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PRINCETON,    N.    J.                        <f> 

Division  .tQ.S>.2,.^.5.5 

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Nn7>iber 

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IS  THE  BIBLE  TRUEl 


SEyE^"  ADDRESSES 


BY 

JAMES    H.i:^>EOOKES, 

Editor  of  The   Truth,  and   Author  of  -'The  Way  jMaiU   J'lain, 
*'  Marantitlia:  or  the  Lord  Cometh,"  "  How  to  he  Saved," 
'  •  May  Chiistians  Dance  v"  etc. 


ST.    LpriS.   MO.: 

CHAS.    B.    COX,    PUBLISHER. 

•212  North  Fifth  Street. 

CiM<A(.0:  F.  H.  RENELL,   91  W'^ashingtox  Sthk-t 
Publisher  of  Evangelical  Literature. 


^v  — * — 

^^    . 


PEEF  ACE. 


Certain  gentlemen  of  culture  and  influence  requested  an 
answer  to  the  leading  arguments  which  Strauss,  in  his  Life  of 
Jesus,  urges  against  the  credibility  of  the  Gospel  historj?". 
This  accounts  for  the  frequent  allusions  in  the  following 
pages  to  the  celebrated  German  skeptic.  Of  course  every 
intelligent  Christian  has  learned,  perhaps  by  experience,  the 
fruitlessness  of  a  mere  intellectual  combat  with  infidelity ; 
but  the  request  could  not  have  been  declined  without  dis- 
honor to  the  Master. 

The  answer  was  given  on  seven  successive  evenings  of  the 
Lord's  day ;  and  several  believers  who  heard  the  discourses 
have  desired  their  publication,  hoping  that  they  may  be  help- 
ful and  suggestive  to  some  of  the  Lord's  little  ones,  by 
presenting  in  a  brief  and  cheap  form  a  few  facts  and  thoughts, 
which  prove  the  Bible  to  be  more  than  the  work  of  man. 

These  friends  know  that  the  Lectm-es  were  written  under 

the  burden  of  manifold  labors,  and  that  during  the  entir3 

period   always   eight,   and   generally   ten,    public   services 

claimed  attention  each  week,  besides  other  cares  it  would  be 

improper  to  mention  here.    Only  a  few  hours,  snatched  from 

3 


IV  PEEFACE. 

various  engagements,  could  be  devoted  to  their  preparation, 
and  there  was  no  opportunity  to  revise  even  one  of  them  at 
leisure. 

They  are  sent  forth,  therefore,  with  a  humiliating  con- 
sciousness of  their  failure  to  present,  in  any  proper  clearness 
and  fulness,  the  claims  of  Jesus  and  His  word.  But  He 
knows  that  they  were  gladly  undertaken  solely  for  Him ;  and 
now  as  a  most  imperfect  offering  they  are  laid  at  His  feet  with 
the  prayer,  that  He  mpy  be  pleased  to  use  the  weak  things  of 
the  world  to  confound  the  things  which  are  mighty. 

St.  Louis,  April,  1877. 


;J^vy  ot  Frin^ 


CONTENTS 


1.  Inspiration,  -  -  -  - 

II.  The  Canon  of  the  New  Testament, 

III.  The  Character  of  Jesus, 

IV.  Human  Estimate  of  Jesus,     - 
V.  The  Resurrection  of  Jesus, 

VI.  The  Bible  Its  Own  Witness, 

Vn.  Alleged  Contradictions, 


7 
38 

68 
101 
]34 
170 
204 


IS  THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 


I. 

INSPIRATION. 

STEAUSS  says  in  his  Preface  to  the  Life  of 
Jesus,  "  AVhat  we  especially  want  to  know  is 
this  : — is  the  Gospel  history  true  and  reliable  as  a 
whole,  and  in  its  details,  or  is  it  notf  This  is  in- 
deed precisely  what  we  want  to  know,  and  what  it 
greatly  concerns  us  to  know,  for  if  the  Gospel  his- 
tory is  true  and  reliable,  not  ^nly  as  a  whole,  but 
in  its  details,  it  is  obvious  that  the  destiny  of  the 
soul  turns  upon  our  acceptance  or  rejection  of  its 
testimony.  "  He  that  believeth  on  the  Son  hath 
everlasting  life  :  and  he  that  believeth  not  the  Son 
shall  not  see  life ;  but  the  wrath  of  God  abideth  on 
him  ;"  "  Then  said  Jesus  again  unto  them,  I  go  my 
way,  and  ye  shall  seek  me,  and  shall  die  in  your 
sins  :  whither  I  go,  ye  can  not  come.  Then  said  the 
Jews,  will  he  kill  himself!  because  he  saith. 
Whither  I  go,  ye  can  not  come.  And  he  said  unto 
them.  Ye  are  from  beneath ;  I  am  from  above  :  ye 
are  of  this  world ;  I  am  not  of  this  world.  I  said 
therefore  unto  you,  that  ye  shall  die  in  your  sins : 

7 


8  IS  THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

for  if  ye  believe  not  that  I  am  he,  ye  shall  die  in 
your  sins,"  (John  iii.  36 ;  viii.  21-24). 

Let  us,  then,  with  all  the  interest  which  the 
momentous  importance  of  the  subject  demands,  and 
with  all  the  fairness  of  a  calm  and  dispassionate 
examination,  take  u^)  the  question  j)resented  by 
Strauss.  If  it  can  be  shown  that  the  Gospel  his- 
tory has  a  divine  and  imperative  claim  upon  our 
belief,  no  honest  man  will  reject  that  claim,  how- 
ever humbling  to  his  i)ride  of  intellect,  however 
sharp  the  conviction  it  brings  that  he  needs  a 
mighty  Saviour  to  deliver  him  from  ruin,  however 
complete  the  revolution  it  demands  of  his  opinions, 
habits,  and  associations.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  an 
impartial  and  thorough  investigation  of  the  subject 
l)roves  that  the  New  Testament  narrative  is  not 
worthy  of  credit,  as  a  whole,  or  in  its  details,  we 
must  dismiss  all  thought  of  a  revelation  from  God 
other  than  the  displays  of  His  greatness  and  glory 
in  the  works  of  creation,  and  be  guided  by  the  dim 
glimmerings  of  the  human  mind  through  the  laby- 
rinth of  life,  or  resign  ourselves  to  our  dark  and 
inexplicable  fate.  Nothing  more  is  asked  now  than 
a  response  to  the  reasonable  request  of  Joshua  and 
of  Elijah  :  "  If  it  seem  evil  unto  you  to  serve  the 
Lord,  rhoose  you  this  day  whom  ye  will  serve :" 
"  How  long  halt  ye  between  two  opinions  ?  if  the 
Lord  be  God,  follow  him  :  but  if  Baal,  then  follow 
him,"  (Josh.  xxiv.  15;  1  Kings  xviii.  21). 

None  will  deny  that  it  is  proper  to  begin  our  re- 
search with  the  inquiry,  what  does  the  Bible  say 
of   itself,  or  what  do  its    writers    affirm    of   its 


INSPIRATION.  9 

authority  ?  Of  course  no  attempt  will  be  made  to 
prove  to  a  skeptic  its  inspiration  by  its  own  testi- 
mony ;  but  even  the  skeptic  will  wish  to  know  with 
what  pretensions  it  comes  to  us,  and  whether  it 
asserts  that  it  is  only  of  human  origin,  or  insists 
that  it  contains  the  very  word  of  God.  We  find 
that  it  embraces  sixty-six  separate  books,  written 
at  various  intervals  during  a  period  of  about  six- 
teen hundred  years,  or,  as  some  modern  infidels 
think,  a  still  longer  period.  It  professes  to  treat 
of  the  entire  term  of  man's  existence  upon  the  earth, 
from  his  creation  to  the  judgment  of  the  great 
white  throne  at  the  close  of  a  thousand  years  of 
millennial  peace  and  righteousness.  Its  authors 
were  of  various  occupations,  as  lawgivers,  generals, 
judges,  kings,  priests,  governors,  farmers,  shep- 
herds, herdmen,  fishermen,  soldiers,  physicians, 
and  tax-gatherers ;  including  every  variety  of  in- 
tellectual endowment,  and  literary  attainment,  and 
social  position. 

Opening  this  remarkable  volume,  so  unlike  any 
other,  we  read  the  equally  remarkable  statement, 
"  All  scripture  is  given  by  inspiration  of  God,  and 
is  profitable  for  doctrine,  for  reproof,  for  correction, 
for  instruction  in  righteousness  ;  that  the  man  of 
God  may  be  perfect,  thoroughly  furnished  unto  all 
good  works,"  (2  Tim.  iii.  16,  17).  The  scripture  to 
which  reference  is  here  made,  as  shown  in  the  j)re- 
ceding  verse,  is  contained  in  the  Old  Testament, 
known  by  Timothy  from  his  childhood,  and  able,  it 
is  added,  to  make  him  wise  unto  salvation  through 
faith  which  is  in  Christ  Jesus.    The  scripture  is 


10  IS   THE   BIBLE   TRUE? 

literally  writing,  and  a  writing  consists  of  letters 
and  words,  not  merely  of  thoughts.  What  is 
WRITTEN,  therefore,  is  declared  to  be  inspired  of 
God,  and  that  which  is  inspired  of  God  is  "all 
SCRIPTURE,"  embracing  all  that  is  written.  Or 
if  the  sentence  should  be  rendered,  as  some  prefer, 
"  every  scripture  inspired  of  God  is  profitable," 
this  only  imparts  stronger  force  to  the  declaration ; 
for  it  then  links  itself  to  the  sacred  writings  men- 
tioned just  before,  and  affirms  of  every  one  of  these 
that  it  is  given  by  inspiration  of  God. 

"  For  the  prophecy  came  not  in  old  time  [or  at 
any  time,  as  it  is  in  the  margin]  by  the  will  of  man : 
but  holy  men  of  God  spake  as  they  were  moved  by 
the  Holy  Ghost,"  (2  Pet.  i.  21).  A  careful  examina- 
tion of  the  terms  j^rophccy  and  'prophet  as  employed 
in  the  Bible  will  show  that  they  are  not  to  be  limit- 
ed to  the  prediction  of  future  events,  but  prophecy 
is  the  revelation  of  the  mind  of  God  in  human  lan- 
guage, and  a  prophet  is  one  who  utters  the  words 
of  God,  whether  they  refer  to  that  which  is  past  or 
yet  to  come,  to  doctrine  or  to  duty.  Here  then  it 
is  distinctly  asserted  that  the  revelation  of  God's 
pleasure  and  purpose  concerning  Himself,  or  con- 
cerning His  people,  or  concerning  the  world  at 
large,  came  not  of  old  time  by  the  will  of  man ;  but 
holy  men  of  God  spake,  not  thought  simply,  as 
they  were  moved  by  the  Holy  Ghost. 

Turning  to  these  men  of  old  time  we  find  David, 
for  example,  testifying  on  his  dying  bed,  "  The 
Spirit  of  the  Lord  spake  by  me,  and  his  word 
[not  His  thought  only]  was  in  my  tongue,"  (2  Sam. 


INSPIRATION.  11 

xxiii.  2).  Isaiah  opens  his  prophecy  by  saying, 
"Hear  the  word  of  the  Lord,"  (Isa.  i.  10),  and 
twenty  times  does  he  declare  that  his  writing  was 
the  WORD,  not  the  thought  simply,  of  the  Lord. 
Jeremiah  begins  by  saying,  "  The  word  of  the  Lord 
came  unto  me,"  (Jer.  i.  4),  and  nearly  one  hundred 
times  does  he  use  this  form  of  expression,  or  de- 
clare that  he  was  uttering  the  word  of  the  Lord, 
and  the  word  of  the  living  God.  Ezekiel  begins  by 
saying,  "  The  word  of  the  Lord  came  expressly  unto 
Ezekiel  the  priest,"  (Ezek.  i.  3)  ;  "  Son  of  man  all 
my  words  that  I  shall  speak  unto  thee  receive  in 
thine  heart — and  tell  them,  Thus  saith  the  Lord 
God,"  (Ezek.  iii.  10,  11) ;  and  about  sixty  times  in 
his  prophecy  he  repeats  the  assertion  or  its  equiv- 
alent, announcing  that  his  statements,  both  as  a 
whole,  and  in  all  their  details,  were  to  be  accepted 
as  the  very  words  of  God. 

Daniel  says,  "  I  Daniel  understood  by  books  the 
number  of  the  years,  whereof  the  word  of  the  Lord 
came  to  Jeremiah  the  proi3het,  that  he  would 
accomplish  seventy  years  in  the  desolations  of 
Jerusalem,"  (Dan.  ix.  8) ;  "  and  when  I  heard  the 
voice  of  his  words,  then  was  I  in  a  deep  sleep  on 
my  face,  and  my  face  to  the  ground,"  (Dan.  x.  9). 
Hosea  says,  "  The  word  of  the  Lord  that  came  unto 
Hosea,"  (Hosea  i.  1) ;  Joel  says,  "  The  word  of  the 
Lord  that  came  to  Joel,"  (Joel  i.  1) ;  Amos  says, 
"  Hear  this  word  that  the  Lord  hath  spoken  against 
you,"  (Amos  iii.  I) ;  Obadiah  says,  "  Thus  saith  the 
Lord  God,"  (Oba.  i.  1) ;  Jonah  says,  "  The  word  of 
the  Lord  came  unto  Jonah,"  (Jon.  i.  1) ;  Micah  says, 


12  IS  THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

"  The  word  of  the  Lord  that  came  to  Micah,"  (Mic. 
i.  1) ;  Nahum  says,  "  Thus  saith  the  Lord,"  (Na.  i. 
12) ;  Habakkuk  says,  *'  The  Lord  answered  me,  and 
said,"  (Hab.  ii.  2) ;  Zephaniah  says,  "  The  word  of 
the  Lord  which  came  unto  Zephaniah,"  (Zep.  i.  1) ; 
Haggai  says,  "In  the  sixth  month,  in  the  first  day 
of  the  month,  came  the  word  of  the  Lord  by  Haggai 
the  prophet,"  (Hag.  i.  1) ;  Zechariah  says,  "  In  the 
eighth  month,  in  the  second  year  of  Darius,  came 
the  word  of  the  Lord  unto  Zechariah,"  (Zee.  i.  1) ; 
Malachi  says,  "  The  burden  of  the  word  of  the  Lord 
to  Israel  by  Malachi,"  (Mai.  i.  1). 

Thus  do  all  the  writers  of  old  time,  who  are 
specially  classed  as  prophets,  solemnly  affirm  with- 
out a  single  exception  that  the  very  words  contained 
in  their  writings  are  the  words  of  Jehovah.  Sev- 
eral hundred  years  elapsed  between  the  first  and 
the  last  of  these  prophets  ;  but  in  hundreds  of  in- 
stances, and  with  unvarying  testimony,  do  they  de- 
clare that  they  were  uttering  the  words  of  God,  not 
their  own  words,  in  their  manifold  communications 
to  men.  In  no  instance  do  they  intimate  that  some 
of  the  words  they  used  wel'e  suggested  by  them- 
selves, or  learned  from  human  authority,  or  mingled 
with  the  words  which  God  put  into  their  mouths; 
but  they  uniformly  insist  that  they  were  repeating 
the  words  of  the  Lord.  One  of  the  latest  of  them 
says  of  his  unbelieving  countrymen,  "  They  made 
their  hearts  as  an  adamant  stone,  lest  they  should 
hear  the  law,  and  the  words  which  the  Lord  of 
hosts  sent  in  his  Spirit  by  the  former  prophets," 
(Zee.  vii.  12) ;  and  the  very  latest  of  them  twenty- 


INSPIRATION.  13 

four  times  in  four  brief  chapters  uses  the  expres- 
sion, "  Thus  saith  the  Lord." 

Nor  is  the  expression  by  any  means  confined  to 
the  writers  particularly  distinguished  as  prophets. 
It  is  of  constant  occurrence  in  the  five  books  of 
Moses,  in  the  books  known  as  historical,  and  in  the 
books  included  under  the  general  title  of  the 
Psalms.  In  hundreds  upon  hundreds  of  verses  as 
any  one  can  easily  see  by  glancing  at  a  good  Con- 
cordance, we  read,  "  Thus  saith  the  Lord,"  "  The 
Lord  said,"  "  The  Lord  spake,"  "  The  Lord  hath 
spoken,"  "  The  Lord  promised,"  "  The  saying  of 
the  Lord,"  "  The  word  of  the  Lord  ;"  and  thus  all 
the  writers  of  the  Old  Testament  at  least  claim  that 
the  language  they  used  was  not  their  own,  but  the 
very  language  which  God  commanded  them  to 
utter.  They  do  not  give  the  slightest  recognition 
to  a  doctrine  unknown  to  the  Christian  Church  for 
a  thousand  years,  an  invention  of  modern  times  to 
please  infidelity,  by  which  it  is  supposed  that  only 
their  thoughts  were  inspired,  or  that  they  were 
only  partially  inspired,  or  that  their  inspiration 
was  not  in  equal  degree  to  all,  or  that  they  had  at 
one  time  an  inspiration  of  supervision,  at  another 
an  inspiration  of  elevation,  at  another  an  inspira- 
tion of  direction ;  but  they  stand  or  fall  upon  the 
bold  statement  that  the  words  they  spoke  and  wrote 
were  precisely  the  words  God  told  them  to  write 
and  speak. 

Not  only  so,  but  they  assure  us  that  men  were 
sometimes  forced  to  utter  the  words  the  Lord  put 
into  their  mouths,  when  they  were  unwilling  to  do 


14  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

His  bidding,  or  unconscious  of  the  scope  and  sig- 
nificance of  their  deliverances,  or  even  opposed  to 
the  very  testimony  they  were  compelled  to  bear. 
Thus  Moses  recoiled  from  the  divine  command  to 
stand  before  the  king  of  Egypt  in  behalf  of  the 
oppressed  Hebrews,  and  exclaimed  in  his  distress, 
"  O  my  Lord,  I  am  not  eloquent,  neither  heretofore, 
nor  since  thou  hast  spoken  unto  thy  servant :  but 
I  am  slow  of  speech,  and  of  a  slow  tongue.  And 
the  Lord  said  onto  him,  Who  hath  made  man's 
mouth '?  or  who  maketh  the  dumb,  or  deaf,  or  the 
seeing,  or  the  blind?  have  not  I  the  Lord"?  ^ow 
therefore  go,  and  I  will  be  with  thy  mouth,  and 
teach  thee  what  thou  shalt  say,"  (Ex.  iv.  10-12). 

"  Baalam  the  son  of  Bosor,  who  loved  the  wages 
of  unrighteousness ;  but  was  rebuked  for  his 
iniquity :  the  dumb  ass,  speaking  with  man's  voice, 
forbad  the  madness  of  the  prophet,"  (2  Pet.  ii.  15,16), 
said  to  Balak,  "  Lo,  I  am  come  unto  thee  :  have  I 
now  any  power  at  all  to  say  anything?  the  word 
that  God  putteth  in  my  mouth,  that  shall  I  speak." 
Again  and  again  he  sought  to  curse  the  Israelites, 
but  each  time  a  blessing  fell  from  his  lips ;  and 
when  at  length  Balak  said,  "  Neither  curse  them  at 
all,  nor  bless  them  at  all,"  Balaam  answered,  "  Told 
not  I  thee,  saying,  All  that  the  Lord  speak eth,  that 
I  must  do  ?"  (Num.  xxii.  38  ;  xxiii.  26). 

"  Saul  sent  messengers  to  take  David  :  and  when 
they  saw  the  company  of  the  prophets  prophesying, 
and  Samuel  standing  as  appointed  over  them,  the 
Spirit  of  God  was  upon  the  messengers  of  Saul, 
and  they  also   prophesied.     And  when  it  was  told 


INSPIRATION.  15 

Saul,  lie  sent  other  messengers,  and  they  prophe- 
sied, likewise.  And  Saul  sent  messengers  again  the 
third  time,  and  they  prophesied  also."  Then  Saul 
himself  determined  to  go ,  '^  and  the  Spirit  of  God 
was  upon  him  also,  and  he  went  on,  and  prophesied 
until  he  came  to  Naioth  in  Eamah.  And  he 
stripped  oft'  his  clothes  also,  and  prophesied  before 
Samuel  in  like  manner,  and  lay  down  naked  all  that 
day,  and  all  that  night.  Wherefore  they  say,  Is 
Saul  also  among  the  prophets  f  (1  Sam.  xix.  20-24). 

A  prophet  of  Israel  invited  to  his  house  a  prophet 
of  Judah,  and  while  his  guest  was  seated  at  his 
table  the  word  of  the  Lord  came  unto  him  and  he 
suddenly  cried  out,  "  Thus  saith  the  Lord,  Foras- 
much as  thou  hast  disobeyed  the  mouth  of  the 
Lord,  and  hast  not  kept  the  commandment  which 
the  Lord  thy  God  commanded  thee,  but  camest 
back,  and  hast  eaten  bread  and  drunk  water  in  the 
place  of  the  which  the  Lord  did  say  to  thee,  Eat 
no  bread,  and  drink  no  water ;  thy  carcase  shall 
not  come  unto  the  sepulchre  of  thy  fathers, 
(1  Kings  xiii.  21,  22). 

Jeremiah,  when  informed  by  the  word  of  the 
Lord  that  he  was  sanctified  from  his  birth  and 
ordained  to  be  a  prophet  unto  the  nations,  timidly 
answered, "  Ah  !  Lord  God !  behold,  I  can  not  speak ; 
for  I  am  a  child.  But  the  Lord  said  unto  me,  Say 
not,  I  am  a  child :  for  thou  shalt  go  to  all  that  I 
shall  send  thee ;  and  whatsoever  I  command  thee 
thou  shalt  speak.  Be  not  afraid  of  their  faces  :  for 
I  am  with  thee  to  deliver  thee,  saith  the  Lord. 
Then  the  Lord  put  forth  his  hand,  and  touched  my 


16  IS  THE  BIBLE  TRUE  ! 

mouth.    And  the  Lord  said  unto  me,  Behold,  I  have 
put  my  words  in  thy  mouth,"  (Jer.  i.  6-9). 

Caiaphas,  who  is  introduced  to  us  in  the  gospel 
of  John  as  high  j)riest  of  the  Jews  at  the  time  of 
Christ's  crucifixion,  said  to  the  Council,  *' Ye  know 
nothing  at  all,  nor  consider  that  it  is  expedient  for 
us,  that  one  man  should  die  for  the  people,  and  that 
the  whole  nation  perish  not.  And  this  spalce  he  not 
of  himself:  but  being  high  priest  that  year,  he 
prophesied  that  Jesus  should  die  for  that  nation  ; 
And  not  for  that  nation  only,  but  also  that  he 
should  gather  together  in  one  the  children  of  God 
that  were  scattered  abroad,"  (John  xi.  49-52). 

These  illustrations,  which  could  be  readily  in- 
creased, are  sufficient  to  show  that  the  writers  of 
the  Bible  affirm  the  existence  of  an  inspiration  not 
merely  complete  and  verbal,  but  an  inspiration  that 
soared  entirely  above  the  human  mind,  that  often 
thwarted  the  human  will,  and  that  frequently  put 
into  the  human  mouth  words,  the  meaning  of  which 
was  wholly  unknown  to  the  person  who  uttered 
them.  Such  is  the  inspiration  brought  to  view 
from  the  first  of  Genesis  to  the  last  of  Malachi ;  nor 
is  there  a  hint  that  only  part  of  these  ancient  writ- 
ings is  inspired,  or  that  they  are  inspired  in  differ- 
ent degrees.  The  theory  now  too  commonly  held 
among  those  professing  to  be  Christians,  that  we 
are  to  look  for  a  partial  and  variable  inspiration  in 
the  Scriptures,  is  a  device  of  man's  intellect  in  these 
"  latter  times  ;'^  and  is  never  mentioned  by  the  in- 
spired penmen  themselves,  who  in  numberless 
instances  represent  their  relation  to  the  book  as 


INSPIRATION.  17 

that  of  Amanuenses  writing  at  the  dictation  of  a 
master. 

Let  us  now  turn  to  the  Kew  Testament  for  a 
moment  to  see  what  it  says  of  the  holy  men  of  God 
who  "  spake  as  they  were  moved  by  the  Holy 
Ghost."  Scarcely  have  we  opened  it  before  we 
read,  ''  Now  all  this  was  done,  that  it  might  be  ful- 
filled which  was  spoken  of  the  Lord  by  the  prophet," 
literally,  "  by  the  Lord  through  the  prophet," 
(Matt.  i.  22).  The  same  form  of  expression  fre- 
quently occurs,  as  in  Matt.  ii.  5, 15,  23 ;  iv.  14 ;  viii. 
17  ;  xii.  17  ;  xiii.  35 ;  xxi.  4  j  xxii.  31 ;  and  it  always 
points  to  God  as  the  source  of  the  declaration  that 
is  quoted,  and  to  the  prophet  as  the  mere  instru- 
ment through  which  it  is  communicated.  When 
Jesus  referred  to  the  Old  Testament  scriptures  He 
described  them  as  the  "•  Word  of  God,"  and  de- 
clared that  "David  himself  said  by  the  Holy 
Ghost,"  (Mark  vii.  13  ;  xii.  36).  The  phrase,  "the 
Scriptures  "  occurs  fifty  times  in  the  I^ew  Testa- 
ment and  fifty  times  it  is  applied  exclusively  to  the 
books  of  the  two  Testaments,  showing  that  the 
canon  was  already  announced  by  the  sacred  writers. 
They  are  also  called  "  the  oracles  of  God,"  and  the 
"  lively  [or  living]  oracles  of  God,"  (Eom.  iii.  2 ; 
Acts.  vii.  38).  As  the  derivation  of  the  word  oracle 
implies,  it  is  something  spoken ;  and  to  those  who 
are  familiar  with  the  history  of  the  ancient  oracles, 
no  term  could  be  employed  to  set  forth  more  dis- 
tinctly and  positively  the  plenary  inspiration  of  the 
Bible,  extending  to  all  its  language.  Over  and 
over  through  the  four  Gospels  and  the  Epistles  do 


18  IS  THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

we  find  the  phrase  *'  God  said,''  or  the  "  Lord  said 
by  such  a  prophet,  or  the  "  Holy  Ghost  said." 

As  we  advance  to  notice  more  clearly  how  the 
Apostles  regarded  the  ancient  scriptures,  we  have 
scarcely  opened  the  book  containing  their  Acts 
when  we  find  Peter  saying,  ^'  Men  and  brethren, 
this  scripture  must  needs  have  been  fulfilled,  which 
the  Holy  Ghost  by  the  mouth  of  David  spake  con- 
cerning Judas,"  (Acts  i.  16).  Here  it  is  said  that 
it  was  the  Holy  Ghost  who  spake,  but  by  or  through 
the  mouth  of  David.  In  the  next  chapter  we  are 
told  the  Apostles  ^'  were  all  filled  with  the  Holy 
Ghost,  and  began  to  speak  with  other  tongues,  as 
the  Spirit  gave  them  utterance,"  (Acts  ii.  4),  speak- 
ing indeed  languages  with  which  they  had  no  pre- 
vious acquaintance,  and  showing  conclusively  the 
nature  of  inspiration,  as  extending  to  the  words 
that  were  uttered.  Afterward,  "  they  lifted  up 
their  voice  to  God  with  one  accord,  and  said.  Lord, 
thou  art  God,  which  hast  made  heaven,  and  earth, 
and  the  sea,  and  all  that  in  them  is ;  who  by  the 
mouth  of  thy  servant  David  hast  said.  Why  did  the 
heathen  rage,  and  the  people  imagine  vain  things  f 
(Acts  iv.  24,  25). 

But  it  is  needless  to  multiply  quotations  of  this 
kind,  when  the  most  cursory  reading  of  the  New 
Testament  will  show  that  its  writers  invariably  re- 
fer to  the  Old  Testament  as  containing  the  very 
word  of  God.  The  former  is  quoted  in  the  latter 
three  hundred  times,  besides  numerous  allusions  to 
various  passages,  and  it  is  always  mentioned  with 
the  reverence  due  to  the  immediate  communications 


INSPIRATION.  19 

of  Jehovah's  mind  and  will.  The  men  who  were 
employed  to  write  it  are  regarded  as  mere  instru- 
ments engaged  by  the  sovereign  pleasure  of  a 
higher  power,  and  not  only  its  thoughts,  but  its 
words,  and  all  of  its  words,  or  all  that  was  written, 
Jesus  Christ  and  the  Apostles  directly  ascribe  to 
God,  without  once  intimating  a  partial,  varying,  or 
incomplete  inspiration.  Hence  with  them  the  Old 
Testament  was  armed  with  supreme  authority,  and 
its  testimony  was  received  as  if  the  voice  of  the 
Almighty  had  just  spoken  in  audible  accents.  The 
very  doctrines  at  which  infidelity  has  always 
cavilled,  as  a  personal  devil,  the  depravity  of  the 
human  heart,  everlasting  punishment,  the  need  of 
cleansing  blood,  the  necessity  of  faith,  and  the  very 
narratives  at  which  it  has  sneered,  as  the  destruc- 
tion of  Sodom  and  Gomorrah,  and  the  history  of 
Jonah,  are  precisely  those  upon  which  Jesus  placed 
the  sanction  of  His  own  endorsement,  willing  to 
link  His  word  and  veracity  to  the  word  and  veracity 
of  the  Old  Testament,  whatever  the  result. 

It  will  not  detain  us  long  to  determine  the  char- 
acter of  the  inspiration  claimed  by  the  writers  of 
the  New  Testament.  As  the  Master  sent  forth  His 
disciples  for  the  first  time  to  preach  the  kingdom 
of  God  to  the  Jews,  He  said  to  them,  "  When  they 
deliver  you  up,  take  no  thought  .how  or  what  ye 
shall  speak ;  for  it  shall  be  given  you  in  that  same 
hour  what  ye  shall  speak.  For  it  is  not  ye  that 
speak,  but  the  Spirit  of  your  Father  which  speak- 
eth  in  you,"  (Matt.  x.  19,  20).  Still  later,  standing 
in  the  presence  of  assembled  thousands,  He  said  to 


20  IS  THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

His  followers,  "When  they  bring  you  nnto  the 
synagogues,  ana  unto  magistrates,  and  powers, 
take  ye  no  thought  how  or  what  thing  ye  shall  an- 
swer, or  what  ye  shall  say :  for  the  Holy  Ghost 
shall  teach  you  in  the  same  hour  what  ye  ought  to 
say,"  (Luke  xii.  11,  12).  Later  still  in  uttering  His 
last  woe  against  Jerusalem  He  said  to  them, 
"  When  they  shall  lead  you,  and  deliver  you  up, 
take  no  thought  beforehand  what  ye  shall  speak, 
neither  do  ye  i^remeditate  ;  but  whatsoever  shall  be 
given  you  in  that  hour,  that  speak  ye :  for  it  is  not 
ye  that  sjieak,  but  the  Holy  Ghost,"  (Mark  xiii.  11) ; 
"  Settle  it  therefore  in  your  hearts,  not  to  meditate 
before  what  ye  shall  answer :  for  I  will  give  you  a 
mouth  and  wisdom,  which  all  your  adversaries 
shall  not  be  able  to  gainsay  nor  resist,"  (Luke  xxi. 
14, 15).  Here  then  is  the  distinct  promise,  not  only 
that  they  should  speak  with  resistless  wisdom,  but 
that  He  would  give  them  a  mouth,  or  x^ut  words 
into  their  mouth  ;  for  it  was  not  they  who  should 
speak,  but  the  Holy  Ghost. 

Accordingly,  Luke  the  beloved  Physician,  who 
was  not  an  Apostle,  but  the  travelling  companion 
of  Paul,  is  careful  to  inform  us  at  the  beginning  of 
the  gospel  which  is  called  by  his  name,  that  his 
Jknowleflge  of  the  events  he  is  about  to  relate  he 
received  from  above.  "  It  seemed  good  to  me  also, 
having  had  perfect  understanding  of  all  things  from 
the  very  first,  to  write  unto  thee  in  order,  most  ex- 
cellent Theophilue,  that  thou  mightest  know  the 
certainty  of  those  things  wherein  thou  hast  been 
instructed,"  (Luke  i.  3,  4).     Here  the  words  from 


INSPIRATION.  21 

the  very  first  ought  to  have  been  translated  from 
above  as  it  is  the  same  word  found  in  the  passage, 
"  the  veil  of  the  tern  j)le  was  rent  in  twain,  from  the 
top  [or  from  above]  to  the  bottom,"  (Matt,  xxvii. 
51) ;  the  same  word  found  in  the  passage,  "  He  that 
Cometh  from  above  is  above  all,"  (John  iii.  31) ; 
the  same  word  found  in  the  passage,  "  Every  good 
gift  and  every  perfect  gift  is  from  above^^^  (James 
i.  17) ;  "  This  wisdom  descendeth  not  from  ahove^^'' 
(James  iii.  15) ;  "  the  wisdom  that  is  from  above  is 
hist  pure,"  (James  iii.  17).  He  had  a  perfect  under- 
stauding,  then,  of  all  things  from  above,  or  He 
wrote  as  he  was  moved  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  that  we 
might  know  the  certainty  of  those  things  in  which 
we  have  been  instructed  as  Christians. 

But  even  if  the  reading  of  the  English  Bible  is 
retained,  none  will  deny  the  claim  of  inspiration  by 
Paul  with  whom  he  journeyed,  and  with  whose 
assent  and  sanction,  in  connection  with  the  other 
Apostles,  his  gospel  was  sent  forth,  and  the  whole 
canon  of  the  New  Testament  scriptures  was  formed. 
Luke  declares  it  was  God  who  "  spake  by  the 
mouth  of  his  holy  prophets,  which  have  been  since 
the  world  began,"  (Luke  i.  70) ;  and  Paul  does  not 
hesitate  to  place  himself  in  the  rank  of  these  holy 
prophets  through  whose  mouth  God  spake.  Nay, 
he  occupies  a  higher  position,  in  so  far  as  he  is 
made  the  channel  for  the  communication  of  an  ad- 
vanced truth,  that  was  not  revealed  to  the  earlier 
prophets.  Writing  to  the  Ephesians  he  tells  "  of 
the  grace  of  God,  which  is  given  me  to  you- ward  : 
how  that  by  revelation  he  made  known  unto  me  the 


22  IS   THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

mystery  5  (as  I  wrote  afore  in  few  words,  whereby, 
when  ye  read,  ye  may  understand  my  knowledge 
in  the  mystery  of  Christ ;)  which  in  other  ages  was 
not  made  known  unto  the  sons  of  men,  as  it  is  now 
revealed  unto  his  holy  apostles  and  prophets  by 
the  Spirit ;  that  the  Gentiles  should  be  fellow-heirs, 
and  of  the  same  body,  and  i^artakers  of  his  promise 
in  Christ  by  the  gospel ;  whereof  I  was  made  a 
minister,  according  to  the  gift  of  the  grace  of  God 
given  unto  me  by  the  effectual  working  of  his 
power,"  (Eph.  iii.  2-7). 

Yet  in  this  very  passage,  in  which  he  quietly  de- 
clares that  he  is  standing  beyond  the  prophets  of 
old  time  who  spake  as  they  were  moved  by  the 
Holy  Ghost,  he  also  says,  ^'  Unto  me  who  am  less 
than  the  least  of  all  saints,  is  this  grace  given,  that 
I  should  preach  among  the  Gentiles  the  unsearch- 
able riches  of  Christ,"  (Eph.  iii.  8).  In  another 
place  he  says,  *'  I  am  the  least  of  the  apostles,  that 
am  not  meet  to  be  called  an  apostle,  because  I  per- 
secuted the  church  of  God,"  (1  Cor.  xv.  9) ;  and  in 
still  another,  he  exclaims  with  emotions  of  mingled 
sorrow  and  joy,  of  grief  in  the  recollection  of  the 
past  and  of  gladness  in  the  knowledge  of  divine  and 
victorious  love,  "  This  is  a  faithful  saying,  and 
worthy  of  all  accej^tation,  that  Christ  Jesus  came 
into  the  world  to  save  sinners,  of  whom  I  am  chief," 
(1  Tim.  i.  15).  He  no  longer  afiflrms,  as  he  once 
asserted  that,  touching  the  righteousness  which  is 
of  the  law,  he  was  blameless,  (Phil.  iii.  6) ;  but  he 
describes  himself  as  the  chief  of  sinners ;  and  still 
this  most  contrite  and  huxnble  of  men  assigns  to  his 


INSPIRATION.  23 

written  word  all  the  authority  and  power  that  be- 
long to  the  acknowledged  word  of  God. 

Addressing  the  Corinthians  he  says,  "  My  speech 
and  my  preaching  was  not  with  enticing  words  of 
man's  wisdom,  but  in  demonstration  of  the  Spirit 
and  of  power :  that  your  faith  should  not  stand  in 
the  wisdom  of  men,  but  in  the  power  of  God.  .  .  . 
Which  things  also  we  speak,  not  in  the  words 
which  man's  wisdom  teacheth,  but  which  the  Holy 
Ghost  teacheth ;  .  .  .  for  who  hath  known  the 
mind  of  the  Lord,  that  he  may  instruct  him  ?  But 
we  have  the  mind  of  Christ,"  (1  Cor.  ii.  4-16) ;  "  If 
I  come  again,  I  will  not  spare ;  since  ye  seek  a 
proof  of  Christ  speaking  in  me,  which  to  you-ward 
is  not  weak,  but  is  mighty  in  you,"  (2  Cor.  xiii.  2, 3). 
So  to  the  Thessalonians  he  says,  "  For  this  cause 
also  thank  we  God  without  ceasing,  because,  when 
ye  received  the  word  of  God,  which  ye  heard  of  us," 
ye  received  it  not  as  the  word  of  men,  but,  as  it  is 
in  truth,  the  word  of  God,  which  effectually  work- 
eth  also  in  you  that  believe,"  (1  Thess.  ii.  13) ;  "  he 
therefore  that  despiseth,  despiseth  not  man,  but 
God,  who  hath  also  gi^en  unto  us  his  Holy  Spirit," 
(1  Thess.  iv.  8). 

Thus  did  this  meek  and  lowly  man  ever  exalt  his 
official  word  to  an  equality  with  the  word  of  God, 
nor  did  he  shriuk  from  standing  on  a  level  of 
authority  with  Him  of  whom  he  wrote,  "  The  love 
of  Christ  constraineth  us ;  because  we  thus  judge, 
that  if  one  died  for  all,  then  were  all  dead :  and  that 
he  died  for  all,  that  they  which  live  should  not 
henceforth  live   unto  themselves,    but    unto    him 


24  IS   THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

wMch  died  for  them,  and  rose  again,"  (2  Cor.  v. 
14, 15).  This  is  the  man  of  unswerving  devotion 
to  Jesus,  who  wrote,  "  Unto  the  married  I  com- 
mand, yet  not  I,  but  the  Lord,  Let  not  the  wife  de- 
part from  her  husband."  The  Lord  Himself  had 
given  such  a  command,  when  He  was  upon  the 
earth,  (Matt.  xix.  6-9).  "But  to  the  rest  speak  I, 
not  the  Lord :  If  any  brother  hath  a  wife  that  be- 
lieveth  not,  and  she  be  pleased  to  dwell  with  him, 
let  him  not  put  her  away."  The  Lord  had  said 
nothing  about  the  question  here  raised ;  but  Paul 
gave  the  command,  to  which  unquestioning  obedi- 
ence was  due,  just  as  much  as  if  it  had  proceeded 
from  the  mouth  of  Christ  Himself.  '^  As  God  hath 
distributed  to  every  man,  as  the  Lord  hath  called 
every  one,  so  let  him  walk.  And  so  I  ordain  in  all 
the  churches,"  (1  Cor.  vii.  10-17).  Is  it  i^ossible 
fhat  one  who  spoke  of  himself  as  '^  less  than  the 
least  of  all  saints,"  as  "  the  least  of  the  apostles," 
as  "  the  chief  of  sinners,"  could  establish  ordinances 
for  the  observance  of  all  the  churches,  and  rise  to 
the  height  of  authority  which  he  ascribed  to  his 
divine  Eedeemer,  unless  he  believed  at  least  that 
he  was  infallibly  inspired  to  teach  and  to  command  ? 
But  the  testimony  of  the  apostle  Peter  leaves  no 
room  for  doubt  concerning  the  exact  place  to  which 
his  writings  are  to  be  assigned.  "  Account  that 
the  long-suffering  of  our  Lord  is  salvation  ;  even  as 
our  beloved  brother  Paul  also,  according  to  the 
wisdom  given  unto  him,  hath  written  unto  you ;  as 
also  in  all  his  epistles,  speaking  in  them  of  these 
things  J    in  which    are    some   things  hard  to  be 


INSPIRATION.  25 

understood,  which  they  that  are  unlearned  and  un- 
stable wrest,  as  they  do  also  the  other  scriptures,  to 
their  own  destruction,"  (2  Pet.  iii.  15,  16).  This 
valuable  testimony  is  conclusive  upon  two  points  : 
first,  that  all  of  Paul's  epistles  were  at  the  time  it  was 
given  well  known  to  the  churches  scattered  through- 
out the  Eoman  empire ;  and,  second,that  they  were  to 
be  exalted  to  the  same  rank  held  hjthe  other  scrip- 
tures, of  which  Peter  says,  "  the  prophecy  came 
not  in  old  time  by  the  will  of  man  :  but  holy  men 
of  God  spake  as  they  were  moved  by  the  Holy 
Ghost."  In  like  manner  Peter  speaks  of  himself, 
saying,  "  This  second  epistle,  beloved,  I  now  write 
unto  you ;  in  both  which  I  stir  up  your  pure  minds 
by  way  of  remembrance :  that  ye  may  be  mindful 
of  the  words  which  were  spoken  before  by  the  holy 
prophets,  and  of  the  commandment  of  us  the  apos- 
tles of  our  Lord  and  Saviour,"  (2  Pet.  iii.  1,  2) ;  thus 
raising  his  own  written  word,  and  the  word  of  the 
other  apostles,  to  a  level  with  the  authority  of  the 
holy  prophets,  through  whose  mouth  God  pro- 
claimed His  commands  to  men. 

It  only  remains  to  notice  the  manner  in  which 
Jesus  Christ,  and  those  who  claimed  to  be  the  in- 
spired teachers  of  His  gospel  and  founders  of  His 
religion,  treated  the  very  letter  of  the  scriptures, 
that  were  then  regarded  as  the  sacred  writings  of 
the  Jews.  The  former,  it  is  said,  at  the  commence- 
ment of  His  public  ministry,  was  led  up  of  the 
Spirit  into  the  wilderness,  to  be  tempted  of  the 
devil.  Each  temptation  He  met  with  the  simple 
but  sublime  answer,  "It  is  uTitten;"  and  it  is  a^ 


26  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

remarkable  fact  that  the  scriptures  He  cites  against 
the  suggestions  of  Satan  are  all  taken  from  the 
book  of  Deuteronomy,  so  generally  neglected  now 
even  by  Christians.  In  His  public  discourses  and 
private  conversations  with  His  disciples,  He  con- 
stantly quoted  the  scriptures,  so  that  "  the  Jews 
marvelled,  saying.  How  knoweth  this  man  letters, 
having  never  learned  ?"  and  the  officers  who  were 
sent  to  arrest  Him  returned  to  the  chief  priests  and 
Pharisees  with  the  exclamation,  "  Never  man 
spake  like  this  man,"  (John  vii.  15,  46).  Frequent- 
ly His  teachings  turned  upon  a  single  word  of  the 
Scriptures  ;  and  even  amid  the  agonies  of  the  cruci- 
fixion, we  find  Him  calmly  surveying  the  wide  and 
variegated  field  of  ancient  prophecy,  and,  '•  that  the 
scripture  might  be  fulfilled,"  crying  out,  ^*  I  thirst," 
(John  xix.  28).  After  His  resurrection  also  His 
mind  seemed  to  be  full  of  the  scripture,  for  He 
joined  the  two  disciples  on  their  way  to  Emmaus, 
"  and  beginning  at  Moses,  and  all  the  prophets,  he 
expounded  unto  them  in  all  the  scriptures  the 
things  concerning  himself,"  and  on  the  evening  of 
the  same  day,  appearing  to  the  assembled  disci- 
ples, "  He  said  unto  them,  These  are  the  words 
which  I  spake  unto  you  while  I  was  yet  with  you, 
that  all  things  must  be  fulfilled  which  were  written 
in  the  law  of  Moses,  and  in  the  prophets,  and  in 
the  Psalms,  concerning  me,"  (Luke  xxiv.  27,  44). 

So  Paul,  who  wrote  most  of  the  Epistles,  often 
makes  a  single  word  from  the  Old  Testament  the 
starting  point  of  a  masterly  and  weighty  argument, 
showing  clearly  that  he  regarded  the  sacred  writings 


INSPIRATION.  27 

as  not  inspired  merely  in  general,  nor  in  the 
thoughts  of  the  ancient  i>rophets,  nor  in  different 
degrees  ;  but  in  the  minutest  particulars  of  all  their 
language.  When  to  this  it  is  added  that  he  and 
the  other  apostles  exalted  their  testimony  to  a 
position  of  authority  side  by  side  with  the  holy 
men  of  God,  who  spake  as  they  were  moved  by  the 
Holy  Ghost,  some  conception  may  be  formed  of  the 
claims  of  the  entire  Bible  to -verbal  and  complete 
inspiration,  and  of  the  perfect  unity  that  pervades 
all  its  parts. 

This  unity  is  one  of  the  most  marvellous  things 
about  the  marvellous  book.  Whatever  maybe  the 
alleged  discrepancies  and  inaccuracies  with  regard 
to  dates,  numbers,  and  the  minor  details  of  nar- 
ratives given  by  its  different  writers,  the  most  care- 
less reader  can  not  fail  to  see  that  all  have  one 
general  aim  and  object,  and  that  there  is  a  wonder- 
ful harmony  in  their  doctrinal  statements.  When 
we  consider  that  there  are  about  fifty  human 
authors  of  every  time  of  life  from  early  manhood  to 
old  age ;  of  every  degree  of  mental  cultivation  from 
illiteracy  to  all  the  learning  of  that  period ;  ot 
every  rank  from  the  hut  of  a  fisherman  to  the 
palace  of  a  king  ;  of  every  condition,  from  the  depth 
of  mortal  sorrow  to  the  height  of  earthly  felicity — 
when  we  consider  that  the  first  and  the  last  of  these 
were  separated  from  each  other  by  the  interval  of 
at  least  fifteen  hundred  years — when  we  consider 
that  they  treated  every  conceivable  subject,  visible 
and  invisible,  in  heaven,  in  earth,  and  in  hell,  the 
creation  of  the  world,  the  personality  and  character 


28  IS  THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

of  God,  providence,  liistory,  biography,  customs, 
manners,  opinions,  travels,  all  the  relations  men 
hold  to  each  other  and  the  duties  that  spring 
out  of  these  various  relations — the  remarkable 
unity  that  binds  their  testimony  into  one  magnifi- 
cent and  overwhelming  demonstration  of  divine 
truth  may  well  excite  the  gratitude  of  the  Christian 
mind,  and  the  astonishment  of  the  skei)tical  mind. 
The  same  mighty  Creator,  "  infinite,  eternal,  and 
unchangeable  in  His  being,  wisdom,  power,  holi- 
ness, justice,  goodness,  and  truth,"  is  found  every- 
where. The  same  story  is  told  throughout  of  man's 
sinfulness,  and  wretchedness,  and  need ;  and  from 
Genesis  to  Eevelation  the  same  central  doctrine  is 
taught  that  "  without  shedding  of  blood  is  no  remis- 
sion." It  is  a  book  that  subordinates  every  thing 
to  the  idea  of  God,  of  whose  attributes  it  speaks 
with  a  grandeur  of  conception  and  beauty  of  im- 
agery, which  renders  cold  and  tame  all  the  allusions 
to  the  Deity  made  by  heathen  poets  and  philoso- 
l^hers.  It  is  a  book  that  utters  from  first  to  last  a 
stern  and  persistent  and  indignant  protest  against 
idolatry  and  polytheism  ;  and  that  too  in  the  face 
of  man's  inveterate  proneness  to  both,  as  shown  by 
its  own  records.  It  is  a  book  that  teaches  a  code 
of  morals  which  the  natural  man  scouts  as  alto- 
gether unnatural,  or  denounces  as  mean  and  servile, 
when  it  attaches  to  unexpressed  lust  and  unuttered 
hatred  the  crimes  of  adultery  and  murder,  and  en- 
joins meek  submission  to  insults  and  injuries.  It 
is  a  book  written  by  Jews,  and  preserved  and  ven- 
erated by  Jews  j  and  yet  that  portion  of  it  which 


INSPIRATION.  29 

they  recognize  is  but  the  monument  of  Jewish 
infamy  and  shame,  in  the  tremendous  charges  it 
brings  against  them  of  disobedience,  ingratitude, 
unbelief,  and  worse  than  beastly  insensibility  to  the 
claims  of  Jehovah,  and  to  their  own  temporal  and 
eternal  interests.  It  is  a  book  that  presents  to  us 
the  i^ortraitof  Jesus  of  Kazareth,  which  was  surely 
not  the  product  of  Greek,  or  Koman,  or  Jewish 
culture,  since  no  such  thought  ever  entered  the 
mind  of  any  ancient  writer  known  to  the  world, 
and  no  such  character  could  have  been  conceived, 
because  it  was  contrary  to  human  experience  and 
observation. 

While  in  all  these  and  many  other  respects,  the 
Bible  is  so  unique  that  it  fully  substantiates  the 
proposition,  "it  is  not  such  a  book  as  man  would 
have  made,  if  he  could;  or  could  have  made,  if  he 
would,"  it  is  still  more  unique,  as  already  stated, 
in  the  perfect  agreement  of  its  testimony  upon 
every  point  of  doctrine  or  duty  which  it  presents. 
Strauss  begins  his  Life  of  Jesus  by  reviewing  and 
setting  aside  as  practically  worthless  those  who 
had  preceded  him  in  their  attacks  upon  the  credi- 
bility of  the  Gospel  history ;  but  where  among  the 
fifty  writers  of  the  Bible,  do  you  find  one  who  is  in 
conflict  with  the  others  touching  any  leading  truth  ? 
It  can  be  easily  shown  that  there  is  not  the  slight- 
est inaccuracy  of  statement,  or  smallest  discrepancy 
of  fact,  in  their  entire  i)roductions  ;  yet  if  it  be  ad- 
mitted that  they  are  not  always  harmonious  in  the 
trifling  incidents  of  their  narratives,  how  obvious 
it  is  that  in  their  great  and  important  thoughts  and 


30  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE  ! 

declarations,  the  book  is  but  one,  like  the  one  God 
it  reveals. 

It  is  irue  that  each  writer  has  his  own  peculiar 
modes  of  expression,  as  we  can  readily  distinguish 
the  style  of  Isaiah  from  that  of  Jeremiah,  or  the 
style  of  Paul  from  that  of  John  ;  and  that  this  has 
been  urged  as  an  objection  to  a  verbal  or  plenary 
inspiration.  But  the  objection  may  be  met  by  the 
simple  question,  who  knows  the  style  of  God  in  the 
l>lenitude  of  His  power  and  wisdom  ?  Not  only  is 
it  asserted  by  the  writers  of  the  Old  Testament 
that  He  spoke  in  innumerable  instances  to  the 
patriarchs  and  prophets ;  but  the  writers  of  the 
New  Testament  mention  at  least  three  occasions 
when  He  burst  heaven  open  to  speak  in  articulate 
utterance  concerning  His  well  beloved  Son.  God 
therefore  can  speak,  and  why  can  He  not  speak  in 
the  manifold  style  of  those  whose  tougues  and  pens 
He  employed  to  i)roclaim  His  words  ?  Sometimes 
a  master  hand,  b^  the  skillful  use  of  the  keys  and 
stops  of  an  organ,  can  make  us  hear  the  moan  of 
the  storm,  the  roar  of  thunder,  the  murmur  of  the 
surf,  the  singing  of  birds ;  and  yet  one  mind  sug- 
gests and  controls  and  emits  these  different  sounds. 
Who  will  say  that  the  Supreme  Mind  of  the  uni- 
verse may  not  play  and  act  upon  the  minds  and  the 
mouths  of  His  creatures,  without  the  least  disturb- 
ance of  their  individual  peculiarities  ! 

How  else  shall  we  explain  the  singular  preserva- 
tion from  egregious  error  of  these  writers  who 
claim,  as  has  been  abundantly  proved,  a  verbal  in- 
spiration !     If  the  very  words  of  lijeir  writings,  and 


INSPIRATION..  31 

of  all  their  writings,  were  not  given  by  inspiration 
of  God,  it  is  clear  that  they  uttered  a  falsehood 
deliberately  and  repeatedly.  But  if  this  latter  sup- 
position is  correct,  how  can  we  account  for  the  fact 
that  they  denounce  falsehood  and  deception  in  all 
its  forms,  and  that  their  writings,  if  cordially  re- 
ceived, at  once  lift  the  soul  into  a  higher  and  nobler 
life  than  it  has  ever  known  before  ?  If  their  very 
words  were  not  inspired,  it  is  obvious  that  they 
can  be  of  no  practical  value  to  those  who  are  long- 
ing and  struggling  to  reach  this  higher  ahd  nobler 
life ;  for  not  only  are  we  accustomed  to  think  in 
words,  and  find  it  impossible  to  separate  words 
from  thoughts,  but  in  the  convictions  of  conscience 
and  yearnings  of  heart  experienced  by  every  aAvak- 
ened  sinner,  it  is  of  necessity  that  the  mind  stay 
itself  upon  something  more  definite  and  tangible, 
and  stable,  than  vague  and  unattainable  thoughts. 
If  the  thoughts  only,  and  not  the  words,  are  in- 
spired, if  the  thoughts  soar  to  heaven  on  the  wings 
of  omniscience,  but  the  words  are  dragged  down  to 
earth  by  human  frailty,  every  one  must  perceive  at 
a  glance  that  we  are  drifting  in  an  uncertain  voy- 
age upon  a  dark  sea ;  for  in  the  nature  of  the  case 
nothing  but  words  can  form  the  guide  and  rule  of 
our  conduct ;  and  if  only  part  of  the  words  are  in- 
spired, there  is  evidently  no  criterion  to  distinguish 
the  true  from  the  false,  except  the  decisions  of  our 
own  fallible  judgment.  One  man  rejects  one  part 
of  the  Scriptures  because  it  does  not  commend 
itself  to  his  acceptance,  and  another  man  rejects 
another  portion,  until  we  shall  soon  have  no  Bible 


32  IS   THE  BIBLE  TRUE  f 

at  all.  Hence  Strauss  properly  characterizes 
Neander's  feeble  reply  to  his  Life  of  Jesus  as  "  an 
irresolute  resistance,  like  that  of  a  garrison  half 
inclined  to  capitulate,  and  already  under  partial 
promise  to  surrender."  With  a  siugle  sentence  the 
infidel  assailant  forever  silences  the  Christian  de- 
fender when  he  says,  *'He  treats  the  Evangelists 
generally  as  writing  under  inspiration,  but  an  in- 
spiration apart  from  their  educational  development 
as  men,  and  regulating,  not  the  historical,  but  only 
the  religious  part  of  their  accounts  :  as  if  the  his- 
torical and  the  religious  were  not  indissolnUy  con- 
nected,^^ (p.  37). 

But,  admitting  for  a  moment  the  correctness  of 
the  theory  that  the  four  Gospels  were  not  written 
by  their  reputed  authors,  no  one  will  deny  that  they 
were  written  at  an  age  of  the  world,  when  the  most 
familiar  facts  brought  to  light  by  modern  science 
were  wholly  unknown.  Errors  and  mistakes  con- 
fessedly abound  in  the  works  of  the  greatest 
authors  of  antiquity,  and  in  the  sacred  books  of  the 
heathen  religions,  as  those  cherished  by  the  Hin- 
doos and  Chinese,  because  they  were  ignorant  of 
many  scientific  discoveries  with  which  a  school 
child  in  Christian  lands  is  acquainted.  Such  errors 
and  mistakes  abound  also  in  the  productions  of 
Christian  authors  who  immediately  followed  the 
Ai)ostles.  Strauss,  in  his  argument  against  the 
authenticity  of  John's  Gospel,  attaches  very  little 
importance  to  the  testimony  of  Irenseus,  because 
he  says,  ''  The  men  of  old,  who  saw  John  the  dis- 
ciple of  the  Lord,  remember  to  have  heard  from 


INSPIRATION.  33 

him  liow  in  those  times  the  Lord  taught,  and  said, 
Days  will  come  when  vines  shall  grow  each  with 
10,000  shoots,  and  to  every  shoot  10,000  branches, 
and  to  every  branch  10,000  tendrils,  and  to  every 
tendril  10,000  bunches,  and  to  every  bunch  10,000 
berries,  and  every  berry  shall  yield  when  pressed 
twenty-five  measures  (about  six  puncheons)  of 
wine,"  (p.  89).  But  the  question  is,  why  is  nothing 
of  this  kind  recorded  in  the  writings  of  John 
himself? 

Again,  Clement,  mentioned  by  Paul  as  his  fellow 
laborer  in  the  Epistle  to  the  Philippians,  has  left 
an  authentic  letter  in  which  he  illustrates,  or 
endeavors  to  prove  from  analogy,  the  doctrine  of 
the  resurrection.  He  declares  that  there  is  in 
Spain  a  bird  called  the  phoenix,  which  attains  the 
age  of  six  hundred  years,  and  when  it  finds  death 
approaching,  it  sets  fire  to  its  own  nest,  leaving 
only  the  ashes  out  of  which  another  bird  emerges, 
and  thus  it  is  perpetuated.  The  same  illustration 
or  argument  is  used  by  several  of  the  early  Chris- 
tian writers,  and  similar  absurdities  and  blunders 
exist  in  the  works  of  all  of  them,  even  of  the  elo- 
quent Lactantius  and  the  profound  and  devout 
Augustine.  Why  did  not  Paul  say  something  like 
this  in  his  sublime  discussion  of  the  doctrine  of  the 
resurrection  ? 

For  the  most  x>art  the  sacred  writers  were 
uneducated  men  of  the  lowest  social  rank,  totally 
unacquainted  with  the  schools  of  learning  and  the 
works  of  philosophers,  poets,  and  orators.  They 
touch  upon  all  topics  that  affect  man's  interests  in 
2 


34  IS    THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

this  world  or  the  world  to  come.  Their  statements 
have  been  subject  for  nearly  eighteen  centuries  to 
the  severest  scrutiny  and  fiercest  criticism  j  and  yet 
the  Christian  may  calmly  and  confidently  challenge 
modern  science  to  point  to  one  line  or  word  that  is 
in  conflict  with  known  facts.  If  they  speak  of  the 
form  of  the  earth,  even  as  far  back  as  the  days  of 
Isaiah,  700  years  before  Christ,  or  of  Job,  1500 
years  before  Christ,  they  describe  it  as  a  globe, 
(Isa.  xl.  22;  Job  xxvi.  10).  If  they  refer  to  its  i)Osi- 
tion  in  space,  they  inform  us  that  it  hangs  upon 
nothing,  (Job  xxvi.  7) ;  and  never  once  do  they  fall 
into  the  error  of  the  Koran,  which  regards  the 
mountains  as  created  "  to  j)revent  the  earth  from 
moving,  as  if  with  anchors  and  cables ;"  never  once 
do  they  indulge  in  the  folly  and  puerility  of  the 
Shaster.  If  Jesus  alludes  to  His  second  coming  in 
the  air  when  His  saints  shall  be  caught  up  in  clouds 
to  meet  Him,  He  anticipates  the  discoveries  of 
modern  astronomy,  and  describes  His  advent  as 
occurring  when  it  will  be  night  at  one  part  of  the 
earth,  early  morning  at  another,  and  a  more  ad- 
vanced hour  of  the  day  at  another,  (Luke  xvii. 
34-36) ;  and  these  are  but  illustrations  of  the  singu- 
lar accuracy  that  distinguishes  the  writings  of  the 
Bible  from  the  books  of  all  other  religions.  Can 
we  fairly  and  reasonably  account  for  it  on  any 
ground  except  that  of  divine  and  plenary  in- 
spiration ? 

Lastly,  let  us  think  for  a  moment  of  the  power 
and  immortality  of  these  writings.  Carlyle  com- 
mences his  essay  upon  Diderot  with  the  remark, 


INSPIRATION.  35 

**  The  Acts  of  the  Christian  Apostles ^  on  which,  as 
we  may  say,  the  world  has  now  for  eighteen  cen- 
turies had  its  foundation,  are  written  in  so  small  a 
compass,  that  they  can  be  read  in  one  little  hour. 
The  Acts  of  the  French  Fhilosophes,  the  importance 
of  which  is  already  exhausting  itself,  lie  recorded 
in  whole  acres  of  typography,  and  would  furnish 
reading  for  a  life  time."  Yet,  he  might  have  added, 
who  reads  them  ?  Only  a  few  years  ago  the  world 
was  ringing  with  the  noise  made  by  the  appearance 
of  Eenan's  Life  of  Jesus,  and  the  printing  presses 
were  pushed  to  meet  the  popular  demand  for  a  book, 
which,  its  admirers  claimed,  would  overthrow  the 
fabric  of  Christianity.  Who  prints  the  book  now, 
who  calls  for  it,  who  cares  for  it !  It  has  passed 
away  like  a  forgotten  romance,  while  the  British 
and  Foreign  Bible  Society  alone  has  circulated 
nearly  seventy-five  million  copies  of  the  Scriptures 
in  more  than  two  hundred  languages  and  dialects  of 
our  race,  and  the  American  Bible  Society  has  sent 
forth  nearly  thirty-four  million  copies,  besides  the 
countless  copies  issued  by  various  publishing 
houses  of  Christendom. 

The  precious  book  still  lives,  and  the  more  it  is 
read  and  studied,  the  more  profound  becomes  the 
conviction  of  those  who  gaze  into  its  wondrous 
depths  that  God  is  its  real  author.  To  such  you 
might  as  well  say  that  man  made  the  earth,  as  to 
say  that  man  made  the  Bible,  for  the  latter  not  less 
distinctly  than  the  former  proclaims    its    divine 

origin, 

"  Forever  singing  as  they  shine, 
The  hand  that  made  us  is  divine." 


36  IS   THE   BIBLE   TRUE? 

If  you  read  Strauss  carefully,  you  will  receive 
the  impression  that  he  i^ossesses  a  remarkably 
clear,  logical,  and  acute  mind,  and  a  singular  power 
of  critical  analysis;  but  how  often  will  you  wish  to 
read  his  book  before  you  have  thoroughly  mastered 
iU  contents  ?  Once,  twice,  three  times,  and  then 
you  are  done  with  him,  because  he  can  teach  you 
nothing  more,  and  to  read  it  again  would  be  like 
spending  your  time  in  going  over  the  alphabet. 
Yet  you  may  read  the  Bible  a  hundred  times,  and 
find  something  you  never  discovered  before,  some- 
thing new,  something  fresh,  something  unutterably 
sweet  at  each  successive  reading.  To-night  a  great 
multitude  which  no  man  can  number,  of  the  best, 
the  purest,  the  most  gifted,  the  most  useful  of  man- 
kind, are  hanging  over  its  words  with  tears  of  con- 
trition, or  with  smiles  of  gladness  and  of  hope. 
They  are  walking  in  the  light  it  throws  upon  their 
path  that  without  its  radiance  would  be  so  dark, 
they  are  cheered  in  their  sorrows  by  its  tender 
assurances,  they  are  guided  in  their  perplexities  by 
its  matchless  wisdom,  and  they  know  that,  despite 
all  the  attacks  of  infidelity,  they  will  be  sustained 
on  a  dying  bed  by  its  sweet  promises. 

Last  summer,  while  tarrying  for  a  few  daj  s  on 
the  sea  coast,  mj  attention  was  directed  to  a  great 
rock  at  some  distance  from  the  shore.  As  the  tide 
came  in,  or  the  waves  rolled  high,  it  was  lost  to 
view ;  but  it  was  still  there,  and  by  and  by  it  lifted 
its  rugged  head  above  the  waters,  unmoved  and 
unchanged.  Again  and  again  have  the  arguments 
and   objections  of    infidel    science  and    criticism 


INSPIRATION.  37 

seemed  to  rush  like  angry  billows  over  this  blessed 
book ;  but  after  a  little  while  it  stood  forth  as  of  old 
in  its  omnipotent  and  eternal  stability.  Men  may 
cavil,  or  men  may  rage;  "  nevertheless  the  founda- 
tion of  God  standeth  sure,"  (2  Tim.  ii.  19).  "  Thou 
wilt  keep  him  in  perfect  peace,  whose  mind  is 
stayed  on  thee:  because  he  trusteth  in  thee. 
Trust  ye  in  the  Lord  forever:  for  in  the  Lord 
Jehovah  is  the  Eock  of  ages,"  (Isa.  xxvi.  3, 4). 


11. 

THE  CANON  OF  THE  NEW  TESTAMENT, 

BOTH  the  Greek  and  Latin  languages  have  the 
word  canon,  and  in  both  it  means  a  rod,  a 
reed,  a  measure,  a  rule.  It  occurs  five  times  in  the 
New  Testament,  and  four  times  it  is  rendered  rule, 
once  it  is  translated  line.  About  the  age  of  Jesus 
and  His  Apostles  it  was  in  use  among  heathen 
writers  to  denote  literary  works  which  were  re- 
garded as  standards  of  excellence ;  and  soon  it  Avas 
emx^loyed  by  Christian  writers  to  signify  the  entire 
scope  of  doctrine  set  forth  in  the  word  of  God  as 
the  rule  of  life;  and  finally  it  was  applied  to  the 
list  of  the  books  that  comprise  the  Sacred  Scrip- 
tures. Only  in  this  last  sense  is  it  to  be  under- 
stood now,  and  the  discussion  will  be  confiued  to 
the  books  of  the  New  Testament ;  partly  because 
they  form  the  principal  point  of  attack  by  Strauss 
and  other  infidels,  and  i^artly  because  their  authen- 
ticity and  genuineness,  if  fully  established,  will 
perfectly  secure  the  canon  of  the  Old  Testament. 

It  is  at  least  worthy  of  notice  that  Strauss  be- 
gins his  assault  by  referring  to  the  labors  "  for 
more  than  a  hundred  years''  of  those  who  had 
preceded  him  in  their  rejection  of  the  Gospel 
history,  and  speaks  of  the  issue  of  these  attempts 

38 


THE   CANON   OF   THE   NEW   TESTAMENT.         39 

as  "  each  more  unfortunate  than  the  other,"  (p.  5). 
Further  on  he  says,  "  such  are  the  lame  issues  of 
Schleiermacher's  Life  of  Jesus,"  (p.  25) ;  and  again, 
*'  Hase  self-complacently  calls  his  '  Manual,'  first 
l^ublished  in  1829,  an  essay  towards  a  really 
scientific  life  of  Jesus ;  contrasting  with  it  my  own 
work  six  years  later  in  date,  which  he  calls  critically 
one-sided,  and  therefore  erroneous,  or  at  least  use- 
less," (p.  26).  His  wounded  vanity  leads  him  to 
retort  upon  his  fellow  worker  in  the  cause  of  infi- 
delity by  alluding  to  ^'  the  giddiness  incidental  to 
the  frail  footing  afforded  by  his  lucubrations," 
(p.  27),  and  by  pronouncing  his  view  of  Jesus  "  a 
hopelessly  problematical  caprice,"  (p.  28).  ^'  I  felt 
satisfied  with  none  of  them,"  he  declares ;"  all 
seemed  to  have  in  some  respect  failed,"  (p.  33). 
Then  he  comes  forward  with  his  own  theory,  assum- 
ing that  all  supernaturalism  of  miracle,  of  prophecy, 
of  inspiration  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  must  be  rigidly 
excluded  from  the  Gospel  history,  and  asserting 
that  its  narratives  throughout  are  to  be  considered, 
"  not  the  accounts  of  eye-witnesses,  but  only  frag- 
mentary notes  recorded  by  men  who  lived  at  a  dis- 
tance from  the  events,  and  who,  though  they 
I)enned  down  many  authentic  notices  and  speeches, 
collected  also  all  sorts  of  legendary  traditions,  and 
embellished  them  in  part  by  inventions  of  their 
own,"  (p.  125). 

This  is  the  theory  that  will  pass  under  review ; 
and  first  of  all  we  must  glance  at  the  structure  of 
the  New  Testament.  We  find  that  it  is  composed 
of  twenty-seven  books  or  treatises,  written,  as  is 


40  IS   THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

alleged,  at  different  times  and  places,  and  by  eight 
different  authors,  named  Matthew,  Mark,  Luke, 
John,  Paul,  James,  Peter,  and  Jude.  How  do  we 
know  that  these  men  wrote  the  books  ascribed  to 
them?  The  question  conducts  us  at  once  to 
another.  How  do  we  know  that  Strauss  wrote  his 
first  Life  of  Jesus  twenty-nine  years  before  the 
second  and  larger  edition,  or  that  Sir  Isaac  Newton 
wrote  the  Principia,  or  that  Bacon  wrote  Xovum 
Organum,  or  that  Milton  wrote  Paradise  Lost,  or 
that  Caesar,  Sallust,  Tacitus,  Livy,  Virgil,  Horace, 
Cicero,  Thucydides,  Zenophen,  Aristotle,  Plato, 
Herodotus,  wrote  the  books  attributed  to  them  ? 

Leaviug  entirely  out  of  view  at  present  the  inter- 
nal evidence  of  the  authenticity  and  genuineness  of 
the  sacred  writings,  and  commencing  with  the 
weakest  argument,  the  reply  to  both  of  the  fore- 
going questions  is  precisely  the  same.  We  trace 
the  various  books  mentioned  up  to  the  time  when 
they  are  said  to  have  been  written,  and  no  further. 
We  discover  a  line  of  witnesses  in  unbroken  suc- 
cession affirming  that  the  authors  named  wrote  the 
books,  that  no  one  during  their  life-time  disputed 
their  authorship,  that  no  one  since,  except  it  be 
some  stray  lunatic,  has  denied  it,  and  that  in  many 
instances  at  least,  as  Paradise  Lost,  and  the  Prin- 
cipia, and  the  Novum  Organum,  and  Cicero's 
Orations,  no  other  person  or  persons  could  have 
written  such  works. 

With  this  accumulated  evidence,  only  a  madman, 
or  one  in  a  more  deplorable  condition  than  a  mad- 
man, if  he  perversely  and  willfully  shuts  his  eyes 


THE   CANON   OF   THE   NEW   TESTAMENT.        41 

to  the  truth,  would  persist  in  saying  that  the  books 
were  not  the  productions  of  their  reputed  authors; 
for  we  are  so  constituted  that  we  are  compelled  to 
accept  credible  testimony.  When  witnesses  who 
are  thoroughly  competent  in  every  respect  to  form 
and  express  an  opinion,  and  are  shown  by  their 
whole  character  and  conduct  to  be  thoroughly 
incompetent  to  utter  a  falsehood,  make  a  deliberate 
and  repeated  assertion  touching  any  question  that 
falls  within  the  domain  of  their  personal  observa- 
tion, any  question  of  history  or  of  geography,  of 
facts  that  can  be  reached  only  by  the  highest 
attainments  of  human  knowledge  or  of  events  that 
occur  in  the  daily  rounds  of  ordinary  life, — when 
there  is  no  conceivable  motive  temj)ting  them  to 
make  the  assertion  unless  it  is  true,  and  when  it 
can  not  be  disproved  after  the  most  careful  inves- 
tigation and  searching  criticism, — of  necessity  we 
receive  their  word,  and  place  it  among  the  things 
that  are  positively  known. 

Most  of  the  knowledge  we  possess  is  due  wholly 
to  testimony,  for  not  one  of  us  knows  anything 
whatever  of  the  past  up  to  the  period  of  our  own 
childhood,  except  by  testimony.  Not  one  in  ten 
thousand,  nor  one  in  a  million,  knows  anything 
whatever  apart  from  testimony  of  the  statements 
tha-t  are  found  in  the  school  books,  and  are  univer- 
sally accepted  as  the  truth,  which  come  to  us 
through  the  spoken  or  written  word  of  travellers 
and  of  explorers  in  the  lofty  and  distant  fields  of 
science.  Yet  if  we  did  not  receive  such  testimony, 
the  world  would  stand  still.     If  all  could  be  induced 


42  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

to  take  seriously  the  position,  thoughtlessly  as- 
sumed by  so  many  when  speaking  of  the  Bible,  that 
they  will  believe  nothing  that  lies  beyond  the  range 
of  their  own  observation,  and  nothing  that  is  in  con- 
flict with  their  very  brief  experience,  and  nothing 
that  refuses  to  come  down  to  the  level  of  their  low 
apprehension,  and  nothing  that  admits  the  inter- 
vention of  God's  hand  in  the  affairs  of  God's  world, 
the  courts  of  justice  would  be  closed,  the  wheels  of 
commerce  would  stop  their  movement,  the  very 
foundations  of  society  would  be  rent  as  with  an 
earthquake,  and  men  would  become  more  suspicious 
and  ferocious  than  the  wild  beasts. 

Now  in  studying  the  canon  of  the  >Tew  Testa- 
ment, nothing  more  is  asked  than  that  credence  to 
perfectly  trustworthy  testimony,  which  would  be 
accorded  if  it  were  given  upon  any  other  subject; 
and  it  may  be  well  to  remind  you  that  precisely  the 
same  sources  of  information,  from  which  Strauss 
drew  his  weapons  for  attack,  have  furnished  an 
armory  to  Christians  for  a  complete  and  triumph- 
ant defence.  Where  one  Strauss  has  assailed  the 
faith  of  the  best  men  and  women  of  eighteen  cen- 
turies, a  hundred  believers  have  promptly  sprung 
forward  to  meet  him,  not  less  acute  in  intellect,  not 
less  accomplished  in  learning,  not  less  pure,  con- 
scientious, disinterested,  and  useful  in  their  lives; 
and  they  have  hurled  back  his  arguments  upon  him 
with  crushing  force.  Sir  Isaac  Newton,  for  exam- 
X)le,  does  not  hesitate  to  say,  "  I  find  more  sure 
marks  of  authenticity  in  the  New  Testament  than  in 
any  profane  history  whatever."    Why  not  believe 


THE  CANON  OF  THE  NEW  TESTAMENT.        43 

his  testimony  here,  as  we  receive  his  testimony 
upon  other  questions  that  called  forth  the  investi- 
gations of  his  powerful  mind?  The  learned 
Gaussen  of  Switzerland,  who  is  certainly  the  peer 
of  Strauss  in  every  respect,  writes  after  thirty 
years  of  close  and  constant  study,  "  We  can  fear- 
lessly maintain  that  in  the  whole  compass  of  ancient 
literature  there  is  not  a  book  to  be  at  all  compared 
to  our  first  canon,  [twenty  of  the  twenty-seven 
books]  as  to  the  complete  demonstration  of  its 
authenticity.  History  does  not  present  a  similar 
instance  of  literary  evidence.  Should  any  doubt 
the  accuracy  of  this  assertion,  let  him  mention  a 
single  book  in  favor  of  the  authenticity  of  which  a 
tenth  part  of  the  same  proof  can  be  produced. 
'  The  testimony  to  its  genuineness,'  says  Michaelis, 
'  is  infinitely  superior,  and  that  in  numerous 
respects,  to  anything  that  ancient  literature  could 
present  to  us  in  favor  even  of  the  most  abundantly- 
attested  books.' "  So  say  thousands  of  godly  men 
and  ripe  scholars,  who  have  carefully  examined 
every  foot  of  ground  over  which  Strauss  journeyed 
to  find  objections  to  the  authenticity  and  genuine- 
ness of  the  books  that  compose  the  New  Testament. 
Even  he  writes  as  follows,  "  Thus  much  is  cer- 
tain that  towards  the  end  of  the  second  century 
after  Christ,  the  same  four  Gospels  as  we  still  have 
are  found  recognized  in  the  Church,  and  quoted  in 
many  ways  as  the  writings  of  the  Apostles  and  dis- 
ciples of  Apostles  whose  names  they  bear,  by  the 
three  most  eminent  ecclesiastical  teachers — Irengeus 
in  Gaul,  Clement  in  Alexandria,  and  Tertullian  in 


44  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

Carthage,"  (Vol.  I.  p.  56).  Again  lie  writes,  "In 
Justin  Martyr  we  gain  firmer  ground,  inasmuch  as 
the  genuineness  of  his  most  important  writings  is 
exposed  to  no  doubt,  and  the  period  at  which  he 
flourished  as  an  author  was,  at  all  events,  that  of 
the  reign  of  Antoninus  Pius,  138-161,  A.  D.'' 
Strauss  then  admits  that  Justin  Martyr  declares 
the  Gospels  "  were  composed  by  the  Apostles  of 
Jesus  and  their  companions,"  (pp.  69,  70).  Again 
he  writes,  "  A  number  of  Gospels,  and  among  them 
without  doubt  our  Matthew  and  Luke,  were  known 
to  the  heathen  philosopher  Celsus,  who  wrote 
against  the  Christians  about  the  middle  of  the 
second  century,  and  he  used  their  differences  from 
one  another,  e.  //.,  in  the  account  of  the  resurrection, 
as  a  proof  against  the  truth  of  Christianity,"  (p.  75). 
Again  he  writes  in  referring  to  a  work  of  Origen, 
"  Basilides,  about  125  A.  D.,  seems  to  have  already 
known  and  recognized  the  Gospel  of  John,"  (p.  84). 
Again  he  writes,  "  It  is  well  known  that  of  all  the 
Canonical  books  of  the  Kew  Testament,  the  Eevela- 
tion  of  John  is  the  one  the  date  of  which  we  can 
determine  most  accurately  from  internal  evidence ," 
and  afterwards  he  says,  John  "  wrote  the  Apoca- 
lypse in  Asia  Minor  in  the  year  Qd>^''''  (pp.  94,  100), 
though  further  on,  he  seems  to  doubt  its  authen- 
ticity, (pp.  373,  380). 

These  are  remarkable  admissions  from  such  a 
quarter.  Formerly  it  was  the  fashion  of  a  very 
coarse  and  very  blasphemous  and  very  ignorant 
infidelity  to  deny  even  the  existence  of  Jesus.  Now 
however  all  infidels  acknowledge  His  existence  and 


THE  CANON  OF  THE  NEW  TESTAMENT.        45 

that  of  His  Apostles,  and  then  bend  their  intel- 
lectual energies  to  what  they  call  a  natural  and 
rational  explanation  of  the  phenomena  of  their 
lives  in  the  history  of  our  race.  They  also  confess, 
as  we  have  just  seen,  in  the  quotations  from 
Strauss,  that  the  four  Gospels  were  known  in  vari- 
ous portions  of  the  Eoman  Empire,  and  attributed 
by  friend  and  foe  to  the  authorship  of  the  Apostles 
and  their  companions,  25  years,  or  at  the  most  50 
years  after  the  death  of  the  Apostle  John.  But 
Strauss  does  not  tell  us  how  these  four  Gospels,  if 
they  were  not  written  by  Matthew,  Mark,  Luke, 
and  John,  came  to  be  received  as  genuine  in  so  short 
a  time  by  thousands  of  Christians  and  Churches 
scattered  over  the  civilized  world. 

A  little  further  investigation  will  account  for  this 
singular  fact.  "  The  Peshito,"  says  Gaussen,  "  is 
of  all  versions  of  the  Kew  Testament  the  most 
ancient,  the  most  celebrated,  and  the  most  valued. 
.  .  .  Michaelis,  who,  with  many  other  eminent 
scholars,  considers  it  of  the  first  century,  or,  at  the 
latest,  of  the  second,  pronounces  it  the  best  of  all 
known  versions  in  regard  to  ease  of  expression, 
elegance,  and  fidelity.  All  who  have  studied  it 
admire  the  good  sense,  the  erudition,  the  independ- 
ence, and  the  accuracy  of  the  translators."  That 
this  version  is  very  ancient  may  be  i^roved  by  the 
fact  that  the  Aramaean-speaking  Christians  were 
the  first  to  receive  the  gospel,  that  their  churches 
were  very  numerous,  not  only  in  Syria,  but  on  the 
banks  of  the  Euphrates  and  of  the  Tigris,  and 
through  the  intervening  country,  and  that  "  their 


46  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

literature  was  then  in  a  high  state  of  advancement." 
It  was  from  this  version  Hegesippus,  the  most 
ancient  ecclesiastical  historian,  quoted,  according 
to  Eusebius,  who  says  that  he  lived  under  Hadrian, 
from  117  to  138  A.  D. ;  and  consequently  "  Jerome 
in  his  *  List  of  Ecclesiastical  Writers  '  i)laces  him 
before  Justin  Martyr,  who  was  born  in  103,  and 
died  in  167.  These  facts  i)rove  the  high  antiquity 
of  the  Peshito  version.'^ 

"  Various  other  circumstances  furnish  additional 
evidence  on  the  same  point.  The  Syrian  Christians, 
from  the  earliest  i^eriod  to  the  present  time,  have 
with  one  accord  gone  so  far  as  to  maintain  that  the 
Peshito  was  the  original  of  the  Kew  Testament. 
.  .  .  What  further  serves  to  establish  the  ven- 
erable antiquity  of  this  version  is  the  fact  of 
its  being  unanimously  used  by  the  various  sects 
into  which  the  Syriac  Christians  are  divided — 
Nestorians,  Jacobites,  Eomanists,  all  employ  it  in 
their  respective  services.  Although,  according  to 
Wiseman,  there  are  as  many  as  twelve  Syriac  ver- 
sions of  the  Old  Testament,  and  three  of  the  New, 
none  of  these  has  ever  supplanted  the  Peshito  in 
the  services  of  the  Church.  It  must,  therefore, 
have  been  adopted  universally  before  the  appear- 
ance of  these  various  sects." 

"  This  version  contains  the  whole  of  our  canon, 
with  the  exception  merely  of  the  Apocalypse  and 
the  four  smaller  and  later  epistles  of  Jude,  Peter, 
and  John."  The  reason  for  the  omission  of  these 
will  subsequently  appear,  but  it  is  certainly  a  strik- 
ing and  suggestive  fact  that  in  this  most  ancient 


THE   CANON  OF  THE  NEW  TESTAMENT.         47 

version,  niuiiing  back  very  nearly  at  least  to  the 
days  of  the  Apostles,  we  not  only  mark  the  absence 
of  every  non-canonical  book,  and  we  not  only  find, 
with  the  exceptions  jnst  named,  all  the  books  of 
the  New  Testament  as  we  have  them  to-day,  but 
the  arrangement  of  the  books  is  the  same  that 
exists  in  all  of  the  best  and  oldest  Greek  manu- 
scripts. "  First,  we  have  the  four  Gospels,  accord- 
ing to  their  invariable  order,  Matthew,  Mark,  Luke, 
and  John  ;  then  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles  5  then  the 
Catholic  Epistles ;  and,  lastly,  the  fourteen  epistles 
of  Paul  in  their  usual  order,  Eomans,  First  and 
Second  Corinthians,  Galatians,  Ephesians,  Philip- 
pians,  Colossians,  First  and  Second  Thessalonians, 
First  and  Second  Timothy,  Titus,  Philemon, 
Hebrews." 

We  next  c.ome  to  the  well  known  catalogue  of 
Origen,  who  was  born  A.  D.  185,  and  was  martyred 
at  the  age  of  sixty-eight  in  253.  This  remarkable 
person  who,  in  the  immensity  of  his  labors  and  his 
power  of  endurance,  was  called  ''the  man  of 
adamant,"  wrote  hundreds  of  books  in  commen- 
taries and  homilies  upon  the  New  Testament ;  and 
though  the  larger  part  of  these  no  longer  exists, 
his  works  that  are  still  extant  consist  of  four  folio 
volumes.  He  travelled  everywhere  to  obtain  the 
most  authentic  copies  of  the  Scriptures  that  could 
be  found,  and  as  the  result  of  his  careful  examina- 
tion, He  gives  the  canon  of  the  New  Testament, 
precisely  as  we  have  it,  embracing  the  whole  of  its 
twenty-seven  books.  It  is  true  he  distinguishes 
the  First  Epistle  of  Peter,  as  uncontro verted,  from 


48  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE  ! 

the  Second  Epistle,  iu  regard  to  which  some 
doubted ;  and  he  also  states  resi^ecting  the  two 
brief  epistles  of  John  that  all  did  not  consider  them 
as  genuine.  In  relation  to  the  Epistle  to  the 
Hebrews,  he  remarks  that  some  doubted,  not  its 
canonicity,  but  whether  it  was  a  production  of  the 
Apostle  Paul;  and  then  adds,  "if  any  Church 
receives  it  as  an  epistle  of  Paul,  it  ought  to  be  held 
in  honor  even  on  that  very  account,  for  it  was  not 
on  light  grounds  that  the  early  Church  has  handed 
it  down  as  a  production  of  Paul's." 

Next  follows  the  catalogue  of  Eusebius  born 
A.  D.  270,  the  favorite  of  the  Emperor  Constantine, 
and  assigned  by  him  to  the  chief  place  of  honor  at 
his  right  hand  in  the  famous  Council  of  Nice  that 
assembled  in  the  year  325.  Of  course  he  had  access 
to  all  the  libraries  of  the  vast  Eoman  Empire,  and 
there  is  extant  a  letter  of  the  Emperor  entrusting 
to  his  care  the  task  of  furnishing  copies  of  the 
Sacred  Scriptures.  His  splendid  literary  attain- 
ments and  facilities  will  not  be  questioned  by  any, 
whatever  may  be  thought  of  his  vacillating  char- 
acter and  unsoundness  of  faith.  In  his  great  his- 
tory he  divides  the  New  Testament  into  books 
recognize  and  books  controverted,  placing  in  the 
first  division  only  "  the  Scriptures  universally, 
unres  rictedly,  and  uniformly  recognized  from  the 
first  as  Divine  by  all  Churches  and  all  ecclesiastical 
writers."  In  this  class  he  ranks,  "  because,"  as  he 
says,  "  all  ancient  teachers  and  the  ancient 
churches  had  uniformly  regarded  them  as  divine," 
twenty-two  of  the  twenty-seven  books  of  the  canon 


THE  CANON  OF  THE  NEW  TESTAMENT.    49 

of  the  New  Testament,  or  7,738  out  of  7,959  verses 
that  make  up  the  inspired  volume.  Of  the  five 
brief  Epistles  not  put  in  this  class,  the  Second  of 
Peter,  James,  Jude,  and  the  last  two  of  John,  he 
says,  "  These  scriptures  which  have  been  con- 
troverted, though  received  by  most  people,  and 
recognized  by  most  ecclesiastical  writers,  and 
publicly  read  along  with  other  Catholic  epistles  in 
most  churches,  have  experienced  some  opposition, 
and  are  less  quoted  by  ancient  writers.'^ 

Succeeding  this  important  testimony  of  Eusebius 
we  have  eleven  distinct  catalogues  in  the  same  cen- 
tury, nine  by  distinguished  "  fathers  "  as  they  are 
called,  and  two  by  Councils.  First,  Cyril,  patriarch 
of  Jerusalem  twenty-four  years  after  the  council  of 
Nice,  recognizes  the  canon  as  we  possess  it,  except 
the  Apocalypse  which  had  not  been  restored  to  the. 
canonical  rank  it  held  for  200  years.  Second, 
Gregory  of  Nazianzus,  surnamed  "  the  Divine  '^ 
gives  our  present  canon  entire  with  the  same 
exception.  Third,  Philastrius,  Bishop  of  Brescia, 
agrees  fully  with  the  two  former.  Fourth,  Athan- 
asius,  perhaps  the  greatest  Theologian  of  the  age, 
only  twenty-six  years  younger  than  Eusebius ; 
followed  by  Epiphanius,  only  a  few  years  younger 
than  Athanasius  ;  followed  by  Jerome,  bishop  of 
Bome,  thirty-five  years  younger  than  Epiphanius ; 
followed  by  Eufinus,  an  intimate  friend  of  Jerome ; 
followed  by  Augustine,  bishop  of  Hippo,  besides  a 
father  whose  writings  have  been  preserved,  but  not 
his  name,  all  give  us  the  twenty- seven  books  of  the 
New  Testament  precisely  as  they  have  been  held 
3 


50  IS  THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

for  fifteen  hundred  years  by  all  the  churches  of 
every  denomination  in  all  the  earth. 

In  addition  to  these  we  have  the  deliberate 
decision  and  decree  of  two  Councils,  that  of 
Laodicea,  which  assembled  in  the  year  364,  and 
that  of  Carthage  which  met  in  the  year  397,  both 
presenting  as  the  true  canon  of  the  New  Testament 
all  of  the  books  as  we  now  read  them  day  by  day. 
Were  not  the  men  who  composed  the  Councils 
better  prepared  to  determine  what  had  been  the 
voice  of  the  Church  than  Strauss  in  the  nineteenth 
century  ?  They  were  more  familiar  with  the  writings 
of  those  who  had  preceded  them,  and  self-interest, 
if  no  higher  motive,  would  lead  them  to  be  exceed- 
ingly cautious  in  announcing  their  conclusion  con- 
cerning the  books  that  were  to  be  received  as  the 
genuine  productions  of  the  Apostles  and  their 
companions.  The  fact  that  some  doubted  and  dis- 
puted for  a  long  time  the  canonicity  of  a  few  of 
these  books  is  conclusive  evidence  of  the  care  that 
was  taken,  and  is  sufficient  to  satisfy  a  sincere 
inquirer  after  truth,  that  nothing  but  the  most 
thorough  conviction  of  their  Apostolic  origin  could 
have  led  to  their  final  and  unhesitating  reception. 

A  moment's  reflection  will  show  how  the  doubt 
and  dispute  arose  in  relation  to  the  Apocalypse, 
the  epistle  to  the  Hebrews,  that  of  James,  the 
Second  of  Peter,  the  last  two  of  John,  and  that  of 
Jude.  With  regard  to  the  book  of  Eevelation, 
nothing  can  be  more  fully  proved  than  its  universal 
reception  at  first ;  but  as  the  hope  of  the  Lord's 
Second  Coming  began  to  decline  in  the  increasing 


THE   CANON   OF   THE   NEW   TESTAMENT.        51 

power  and  progress  of  the  Church,  it  began  to  be 
denied  on  account  of  its  miliennarian  teachings. 
With  regard  to  the  epistle  to  the  Hebrews,  like  the 
Apocalypse  no  one  thought  of  calling  in  question 
fpT  a  considerable  period  its  right  to  a  place  in  the 
canon;  but  at  length  it  declined  in  favor  with  some, 
because  it  was  supposed  to  favor  the  heresies  of 
the  Montanists  and  Novatians,  though  like  'the 
Apocalypse  again  many  of  the  first  men  in  the 
Church  always  maintained  its  canonicity.  With 
regard  to  the  epistle  of  James,  while  the  Eastern 
Church  from  the  beginning  received  it  as  authentic, 
its  inspired  author  never  quitted  Jerusalem,  and 
because  it  was  addressed  "  to  the  twelve  tribes 
which  are  scattered  abroad,"  Gentile  prejudice  was 
slow  to  acknowledge  its  authority,  like  the  incon- 
siderate zeal  of  Luther,  who  once  spoke  slightingly 
of  its  claims  to  authenticity  on  the  ground  of  its 
imaginary  conflict  with  the  doctrine  of  justification 
by  faith.  With  regard  to  the  four  brief  epistles, 
they  were  written  at  too  late  a  date  to  become 
current  previous  to  the  close  of  the  Apostles'  labors, 
and  hence  required  patient  investigation  before 
they  were  admitted  to  a  permanent  i^osition  in 
God's  most  holy  word. 

But  all  this  will  only  carry  demonstration  to  a 
candid  mind,  both  of  the  profound  reverence  with 
which  the  Scriptures  were  cherished,  and  of  the 
extreme  caution  that  was  manifested  until  each 
book  could  assert  its  high  demands  upon  the  faith  of 
Christians  with  divine  and  incontestable  authority. 
It  is  not  true,  therefore,  as  sometimes   iguorantly 


52  IS   THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

affirmed,  that  the  canon  of  the  New  Testament  was 
settled  by  a  few  men,  or  by  the  vote  of  councils, 
but  its  determination  was  simply  the  result  of  the 
same  sort  of  knowledge  that  leads  Germany  to 
receive  as  authentic  Strauss'  Life  of  Jesus,  to  say 
nothing  of  the  guidance  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  the 
result  of  concurrent  testimony  following  from  all 
parts  of  the  widely  extended  Church  and  from  the 
hearts  of  believers.  As  Le  Clerc  in  his  Ecclesias- 
tical History  well  says,  "  There  was  no  occasion  for 
a  council  of  grammarians  to  declare  authoritatively 
which  are  the  genuine  works  of  Cicero  or  of  Virgil. 
In  like  manner,  the  authenticity  of  the  Gospels  was 
established  and  maintained  without  any  decree  of 
the  rulers  of  the  Church.  The  same  remark  applies 
to  the  Apostolic  epistles.  They  owe  all  their 
authority,  not  to  the  decision  of  any  ecclesiastical 
assembly,  but  to  the  concurrent  testimony  of  all 
Christians,  and  to  the  tenor  of  their  contents." 

If  we  look  a  little  further  we  shall  see  that  the 
canon  of  the  New  Testament  was  largely  deter- 
mined in  the  days  of  the  Ax^ostles,  and  that  it  went 
forth  under  their  sanction.  Even  Strauss  admits 
(pp.  65,  66),  that  the  sacred  writers  quote  from  each 
other,  and  in  these  quotations,  as  i)reviously  shown, 
they  place  each  other's  writings  among  the  Scrip- 
tures which  they  affirm  are  given  by  inspiration  of 
God.  Let  any  one  with  a  good  Eeference  Bible 
read  the  Epistles,  and  he  will  be  surprised,  if  the 
study  is  new  to  him,  at  the  number  of  manifest 
allusions  to  the  words  of  the  Lord  Jesus  and  of  the 
different  Apostles,  the  latter  being  put  on  a  level 


THE  CANON  OF   THE  NEW  TESTAMENT.        53 

of  authority  with  the  former,  and  with  the  holy 
men  of  God  in  old  time  who  spake  as  they  were 
moved  by  the  Holy  Ghost.  Thus  Peter  in  his  last 
Epistle  refers  to  all  the  epistles  of  Paul,  and 
declares  that  the  unlearned  and  unstable  wrest 
them,  as  they  do  also  the  other  scriptures,  to  their 
own  destruction.  So  Jude  refers  to  this  last  Epistle 
of  Peter  when  he  says,  "  Beloved,  remember  ye 
the  words  which  were  spoken  before  of  the  apostles 
of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ ;  how  that  they  told  you 
there  should  be  mockers  in  the  last  time,  who 
should  walk  after  their  own  ungodly  lusts."  It  is 
obvious,  therefore,  that  the  canon  of  the  i^ew 
Testament  passed  almost,  if  not  altogether,  under 
the  inspection  of  the  Apostles  themselves,  some  of 
whom  lived  thirty,  forty,  fifty,  and  even  sixty  years 
after  the  crucifixion  of  our  Saviour. 

Let  us  suppose  that  Strauss,  having  i)ersonally 
superintended  the  successive  editions  of  his  Life  of 
Jesus  during  the  i^ast  forty  years,  and  finding  no 
one  to  dispute  his  claim  of  authorship,  goes  at 
last,  as  indeed  he  has  gone,  for  judgment  before 
Him  whose  word  he  has  labored  so  earnestly 
to  overthrow.  Let  us  suppose  that  his  admirers 
a  hundred  years  hence,  if  it  please  the  Lord 
to  tarry  so  long,  and  if  Strauss  should  have  any 
admirers  then,  discover  that  the  authenticity 
of  the  book  is  called  in  question — would  they 
not  be  surprised  and  indignant  at  the  effrontery  of 
skepticism  in  the  face  of  such  evidence?  But  the 
proof  that  he  wrote  the  Life  of  Jesus  falls  far  short 
of   the  evidence  both   external   and  internal  that 


54  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

Matthew,  Mark,  Luke,  and  John  wrote  the  four 
Gospels,  and  that  Paul,  James,  Peter,  and  Jude 
wrote  the  Epistles  ascribed  to  them.  IS'ot  only 
were  the  writers  spared  in  the  midst  of  incessant 
dangers  for  lx)rty,  fifty,  and  one  of  them  for  nearly 
seventy  years;  not  only  did  they  severally  and 
jointly  sui^erintend  the  preservation  and  dissemi- 
nation of  their  writings,  and  thus  guarantee  their 
genuineness  ;  but  these  writings  were  in  the  hands 
of  an  innumerable  multitude  scattered  over  the 
world ',  and  hence  it  was  absolutely  impossible  that 
they  could  be  changed  as  Strauss  imagines  by 
the  addition  of  "  all  sorts  of  legendary  traditions 
and  inventions,"  without  instant  detection  and 
exposure. 

In  the  first  place,  we  have  the  undoubted  testi- 
mony of  heathen  writers,  as  Tacitus  and  Pliny, 
concerning  the  amazing  spread  of  Christianity. 
The  former,  speaking  of  the  burning  of  Eome  by 
IS'ero,  and  his  cruel  attempt  to  fasten  the  crime 
upon  the  followers  of  Jesus,  says,  "  Those  who 
avowed  themselves  to  be  Christians  were  first 
taken  up,  and,  afterwards,  on  their  depositions,  an 
immense  multitude,  convicted,  less  of  having  been 
implicated  in  burning  Rome,  than  of  hating  all 
mankind."  "The  most  obstinate  skepticism,"  says 
Gibbon,  is  compelled  to  respect  the  truth  of  this 
extraordinary  fact,  which  is  further  confirmed  by 
the  accurate  Suetonius,  for  that  historian  likewise 
mentions  the  punishments  inflicted  by  IN^ero  on  the 
Christians."  This  was  while  Paul,  and  Peter,  and 
John,  and  other  Apostles  were  still  preaching  the 


THE   CANON   OF   THE   NEW   TESTAMENT.         55 

Gospel.  Pliny,  an  intimate  friend  of  Tacitus,  and 
governor  of  Bythinia,  having  received  direction 
from  Trajan  to  punish  Christians,  writes  to  his 
imperial  master,  '^What  must  I,  then,  do?  The 
case  appears  to  me  very  serious,  especially  on 
account  of  the  vast  number  of  persons  of  both 
sexes,  of  every  rank  and  age,  who  are  already  or 
will  be  under  persecution.  It  is  not  merely  in  the 
cities  that  this  superstition  has  spread,  but  also  in 
the  towns  and  villages,  and  even  in  the  rural 
districts.'^ 

Justin  Martyr,  a  little  later,  reminds  the  Jew 
that  "  there  are  some  countries  in  which  none  of 
his  nation  ever  dwelt ;  but  there  is  not  so  much  as 
one  nation  of  men,  whether  Greek  or  barbarian, 
Scythian  or  Arabian,  amongst  whom  prayers  and 
thanksgivings  are  not  offered  up  to  the  Father 
through  the  name  of  Jesus  Crucitied."  Tertullian, 
only  a  few  years  later,  writes  to  the  Eoman  authori- 
ties, "  We  are  but  of  yesterday,  and  we  have  filled 
your  empire — all  that  is  yours — towns,  islands, 
fortresses,  municipal  towns,  market-places,  the 
senate,  the  forum.  We  have  only  left  you  the 
temples.  We  can  make  war  upon  you  without 
taking  arms;  it  is  enough  not  to  live  with  you; 
for  if  the  Christians,  who  compose  so  great  a  mul- 
titude, should  abandon  you  and  retire  into  some 
other  country,  it  would  be  the  ruin  of  your  power, 
and  you  would  be  terrified  at  your  own  solitude.'' 
Again  he  says,  "  The  Gothic  nations,  the  various 
Moorish  tribes,  all  the  regions  of  Spain  and  Gaul, 
and  places  in  Britain  inaccessible  to  the  Eomaus, 


56  IS   THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

have  been  subjected  to  Christ,  as  well  as  the  Sar- 
matians,  Dacians,  Germans,  Scythians,  and  nations 
yet  unknown."  What  a  stretch  of  credulity  it 
must  require  to  believe  that  all  these  countless 
Christians,  found  over  the  whole  world,  permitted 
all  sorts  of  legendary  traditions  and  forgeries  to 
be  added  to  the  sacred  books  in  their  hands, 
and  then  i)ersisted  with  unvarying  unanimity  in 
asserting  that  they  possessed  the  very  writings 
of  the  inspired  Apostles !  Well  might  Thiersch 
say,  "  We  must  avow,  that  incredulity  in  reference 
to  the  first  canon,  when  persisted  in,  requires  the' 
admission  of  such  incredible  and  preposterous 
things,  that,  in  comparison  with  such  gullibility, 
the  blindest  belief  of  some  Christians  in  certain 
miraculous  legends  is  a  mere  trifle." 

In  the  second  place,  no  fact  in  history  is  better 
attested  than  the  public  reading  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment in  these  innumerable  and  widely- scattered 
assemblies.  Such  indeed  was  the  direction  of  the 
Apostles  themselves,  as  when  Paul  says  to  the 
Thessalonians,  in  the  first  Epistle  he  wrote,  "I 
charge  you  by  the  Lord,  that  this  epistle  be  read 
unto  all  the  holy  brethren,"  (1  Thess.  v.  27),  and 
to  the  Colossians,  "When  this  epistle  is  read 
among  you,  cause  that  it  be  read  also  in  the 
church  of  the  Laodiceans;  and  that  ye  likewise 
read  the  eiustle  from  Laodicea,"  (Col.  iv.  16). 
Accordingly  Justin  Martyr,  in  his  Apology  to 
the  Emperor  Antoninus,  describing  the  Christian 
assemblies,  says,  "  On  the  day  called  Sunday, 
there  is  a  gathering  to  the  same  place  of  all  who 


THE   CANON   OF   THE   NEW   TESTAMENT.         57 

live  either  in  the  towns  or  country,  and  then  the 
memoirs  of  the  Apostles,  or  the  writings  of  the 
prophets,  are  read  as  long  as  the  time  allows. 
Then,  when  the  reader  has  finished,  the  president, 
by  an  address,  makes  an  exhortation  and  an  appeal 
to  i^rompt  to  an  imitation  of  these  noble  examples." 
Such  was  the  universal  custom,  as  formed  by  Jew- 
ish Christians  in  the  synagogues,  as  taught  by  the 
positive  command  of  the  Apostles,  as  arising  from 
the  nature  and  necessity  of  the  early  gatherings  of 
believers,  as  kept  up  by  God's  people  to  this  day; 
and  surely  no  sane  man  will  assert  that  it  would 
have  been  possible  to  introduce  fictions,  and  for- 
geries, and  all  sorts  of  traditionary  legends,  into 
writings  that  were  publicly  read,  at  least  every 
week,  in  thousands  of  different  places.  Such  a 
thing  could  not  be  done  now  in  any  country  of 
Christendom,  and  certainly  it  could  not  have  been 
done  then  in  all  the  countries  of  the  known  world, 
without  discovery. 

In  the  third  place,  not  only  were  copies  of  the 
four  Gospels  and  the  Epistles  found  everywhere 
throughout  the  Roman  empire,  but  they  were  so 
constantly  quoted  by  contemxiorary  and  subse- 
quent writers  as  to  justify  the  remark  of  Lardner, 
that  were  we  to  collect  all  the  passages  of  the  E^ew 
Testament  cited  in  the  works  of  TertuUian  alone, 
who  wrote  in  the  second  century,  "  their  amount 
would  be  greater  than  all  the  quotations  made 
from  Cicero  during  two  thousand  years  by  all 
writers  that  are  known  to  exist."  Polycarp,  for 
example,   a  disciple  of  the  Apostles,  in  a  letter 


58  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

whose  authenticity  is  not  denied,  written  only  four 
years  after  the  death  of  John,  quotes  extensively 
and  accurately  from  the  Gospels  and  nearly  all  the 
Epistles.  Ignatius,  who  was  of  John's  hearers, 
does  the  same  thing.  Papias,  who  was  also  one  of 
John's  hearers,  directly  attributes  the  Apocalypse 
to  the  Apostle.  Clement,  of  Eome,  who  is  men- 
tioned by  Paul  in  his  Epistle  to  the  Philippians, 
wrote  a  long  letter,  which  has  been  preserved,  and 
which  is  full  of  references  to  the  various  books  of 
the  New  Testament. 

The  extent  to  which  these  quotations  were  made 
in  the  early  ages  of  the  Church  may  be  inferred 
from  the  following  striking  fact  stated  in  the 
Memoirs  of  Eobert  Haldane,  a  Scotch  gentleman 
of  wealth  and  learning,  and  withal  an  eminent 
Christian :  "  There  is  an  interesting  anecdote, 
which  was  related  by  the  late  Eev.  Dr.  Walter 
Buchanan,  with  reference  to  the  means  which 
seems  to  have  been  provided  in  order  to  secure 
the  Kew  Testament  either  from  interpolation  or 
corruption :  '  I  was  dining,'  said  Dr.  Buchanan, 
'  some  time  ago,  with  a  literary  party  at  old  Mr. 
Abercromby's,  of  Tulloby,  (the  father  of  Sir  Ealph 
Abercromby,  who  was  slain  in  Egypt),  and  we 
spent  the  evening  together.  A  gentleman  present 
put  a  question  which  puzzled  the  whole  company. 
It  was  this  :  Supposing  all  the  New  Testaments 
in  the  world  had  been  destroyed  at  the  end  of  the 
third  century,  could  their  contents  have  been 
recovered  from  the  writings  of  the  three  first  cen- 
turies?    The  question  was   novel  to  all,  and  no 


THE   CANON   OF   THE   NEW   TESTAMENT.        59 

one    even    hazarded    a  guess  in   answer  to    the 
inquiry.' 

*  About  two  months  after  this  meeting  I  received 
an  invitation  to  breakfast  with  Lord  Hailes  next 
morning.  He  had  been  of  the  party.  During 
breakfast  he  asked  me  if  I  recollected  the  curious 
question  about  the  possibility  of  recovering  the 
contents  of  the  New  Testament  from  the  writings 
of  the  three  first  centuries  ?  '  I  remember  it  well, 
and  have  thought  of  it  often  without  being  able  to 
form  an  opinion  or  conjecture  on  the  subject.' 
*Weil/  said  Lord  Hailes,  Uhat  question  quite 
accorded  with  the  turn  or  taste  of  my  antiquarian 
mind.  On  returning  home,  as  I  knew  I  had  all  the 
writers  of  those  centuries,  I  began  immediately  to 
collect  them,  that  I  might  set  to  work  on  the  ardu- 
ous task  as  soon  as  possible.'  Pointing  to  a  table 
covered  with  x^pers,  he  said,  '  There  have  I  been 
busy  for  these  two  months,  searching  for  chapters, 
half  chapters,  and  sentences  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment, and  have  marked  down  what  I  found,  and 
where  I  have  found  it,  so  that  any  person  may 
examine  and  see  for  himself.  I  have  actually  dis- 
covered the  whole  New  Testament,  except  seven  or 
eleven  verses  (I  forget  which),  which  satisfies  me 
that  I  could  discover  them  also.  Now,'  said  he, 
*  here  was  a  way  in  which  God  concealed,  or  hid, 
the  treasures  of  His  word,  that  Julian,  the  apos- 
tate Emperor,  and  other  enemies  of  Christ  who 
wished  to  extirpate  the  Gospel  from  the  world, 
never  would  have  thought  of;  and  though  they  had, 
thev  never  could  have  effected  their  destruction !' 


60  IS   THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

Again  it  may  be  asked,  could  a  book  so  revered, 
so  loved,  so  quoted,  so  guarded,  so  universally 
and  constantly  and  publicly  rsad,  become  corrui^t 
by  the  addition  of  forgeries  and  all  sorts  of 
legendary  traditions  ?    Imx^ossible. 

In  the  fourth  place,  the  early  heathen  and  hereti- 
cal writers  never  thought  of  denying  the  authen- 
ticity of  the  books  of  the  New  Testament.  Celsus, 
who  wrote  against  Christianity  in  the  first  half  of 
the  second  century,  or  less  than  fifty  years  after 
the  death  of  John,  boasted  that  he  would  bring  all 
his  arguments  from  the  Scriptures,  and  not  only 
quoted  plentifully  from  the  four  Gospels,  but  from 
the  Epistles.  If  these  Gospels  had  been  formed 
from  time  to  time  by  all  sorts  of  legendary  tradi- 
tions and  inventions  of  various  and  unknown 
writers,  would  not  the  keen  intellect  of  Celsus 
have  instantly  discovered  it?  Would  not  the 
calmer  and  more  philosophic  Porphyry,  who  wrote 
in  the  next  century  against  the  Christians,  have 
known  it?  Would  not  the  bitter  and  vindictive 
Julian,  who  wrote  in  the  succeeding  century,  have 
taunted  the  Christians  with  the  worthlessness  of 
their  records  ?  But  on  the  other  hand,  they  bear 
witness  to  the  genuineness  of  the  Gospel  history 
by  never  questioning  the  authorship  of  its  books. 
In  like  manner  the  various  heretical  sects,  that 
soon  appeared  to  the  number  of  more  than  thirty, 
led  on  by  Marcion,  Tatian,  Valentine,  Heracleon, 
Basilides,  and  others,  are  unanimous  in  certifying 
to  the  existence  of  the  canon  as  we  have  it,  and  to 
its  divine  authority  in  the  churches.     They  might 


THE   CANON   OF   THE   NEW  TESTAMENT.         61 

object  to  this  and  that  book  on  account  of  teach- 
ings that  were  in  conflict  with  their  own  views,  but 
they  did  not  pretend  to  deny  that  all  of  the  books 
of  the  New  Testament  were  written  by  the  men  to 
whom  they  are  ascribed;  nor  did  they  dream  of 
the  theory  which  now  calls  these  sacred  books 
''  myths." 

In  the  fifth  place,  the  style  of  the  canonical 
books  can  be  distinguished  in  an  instant  by  its 
solemnity  and  sublimity  and  heavenly  influence 
and  commanding  authority,  from  all  that  is  spuri- 
ous and  legendary.  In  the  earlier  part  of  the  pres- 
ent century,  William  Hone  brought  out,  in  London, 
a  cheap  edition  of  The  Apocryphal  Gospels,  which 
was  afterwards  reprinted  in  this  country.  He  was 
known  as  "  the  arch-blasphemer."  For  thirty  years 
he  was  an  Atheist,  "  as,"  he  declares,  "  I  believe 
every  consistent  reasoner  must  be,  who  rejects 
Christianity."  He  attained  great  popularity  as  a 
writer,  and  acquired  immense  influence  by  his 
advocacy  of  radical  reform.  At  length  he  was 
prosecuted  by  the  government  for  blasphemy,  but 
he  conducted  his  own  defense  for  three  days  before 
Lord  Ellenborough,  in  the  presence  of  vast  crowds ; 
and  such  was  his  consummate  ability  that,  despite 
the  earnest  efforts  of  the  crown,  he  was  acquitted 
amid  the  applause  of  the  people.  "  When  I  found," 
he  remarked  to  a  friend,  "  what  an  outcry  there 
was  against  me  on  account  of  the  Apocryphal 
Gospels,  I  set  to  work  to  read  the  canonical  Gos- 
pels, and,  oh !  what  a  flood  of  light  burst  in  upon 
me !    And  thus  I  became  a  convert  to  Christianity 


62  IS    iHB   BIBLE   true! 

from  conviction."  From  that  time  until  he  fell 
asleep  in  Jesus,  at  an  advanced,  age,  his  faith  and 
hope  and  love  never  forsook  him,  and  the  following- 
verses,  written  on  the  fly-leaf  of  his  i>recious  Bible, 
contain  his  confession : 

"  The  proudest  heart  that  ever  beat, 

Hath  been  subdued  in  me ; 
The  wildest  will  that  ever  rose 
To  scorn  Thy  word,  or  aid  Thy  foes, 

Is  quelled,  my  God,  by  Thee. 

Thy  will,  and  not  my  will  be  done ; 

My  heart  be  ever  Thine ! 
Confessing  Thee,  the  mighty  'Word,' 
I  hail  Thee,  Christ,  ray  God,  my  Lord, 

And  make  Thy  name  my  sign." 

In  the  sixth  place,  the  language  ol  the  New 
Testament,  and  its  constant  and  minute  references 
to  persons,  places,  customs,  and  historical  facts, 
still  further  establishes  its  authenticity.  Its 
language  is  Hebraic-Greek,  or  Greek  intermixed 
with  Hebraic  peculiarities  and  idioms,  such  as  was 
spoken  in  Palestine.  It  is  not  the  pure  and  ele- 
gant Greek  of  the  classic  writers,  but  precisely 
the  language  we  would  expect  from  those  who  are 
the  reputed  authors  of  the  book.  "  We  may  go 
still  further,  and  assert  not  only  that  the  language 
of  the  Greek  Testament  accords  with  the  situation 
of  the  persons  to  whom  it  is  ascribed,  but  that  it 
could  not  have  been  used  by  any  person  or  persons 
who  were  in  a  different  situation  from  that  of  the 
Apostles  and  evang^elists.  It  was  necessary  to 
have  lived  in  the  hrst  century,  and  to  have  been 


THE  CANON  OF  TWE  NEW  TESTAMENT.        63 

educated  in  Judea,  or  in  Galilee,  or  in  some  adja- 
cent country,  to  be  enabled  to  write  such  a  com- 
pound language  as  that  of  the  Greek  Testament." 
So  we  find  the  writers  referring,  without  the 
slightest  hesitancy,  and  in  the  most  undisguised 
manner,  to  various  localities,  and  historical  events, 
and  prominent  individuals,  as  Augustus,  Herod, 
Agrippa,  Pilate,  Festus,  Felix,  Cornelius,  Julius,  a 
centurion  of  Augustus'  band ;  yet  with  the  single 
exception  of  the  statement  about  the  taxing  of  the 
Jews  under  Cyrenius,  so  far  as  now  remembered, 
the  i^erfect  accuracy  of  their  testimony  is  not  even 
questioned.  Indeed,  many  books  have  been  written, 
by  Paley  and  others,  setting  forth  the  "unde- 
signed coincidences "  that  have  been  gathered  by 
comparing  the  sacred  writers  with  each  other,  and 
that  leave  upon  an  unprejudiced  mind  no  shadow 
of  doubt  concerning  their  honesty  and  strict  truth- 
fulness, even  in  the  minutest  particulars.  Is  this 
the  custom  of  men  who  are  guilty  of  forgery,  and 
are  oifering  to  the  world  a  narrative  of  pretended 
facts  that  are  only  inventions  of  their  own '?  Yet 
the  distinct  charge  of  Strauss  is,  that  the  four  Gos- 
pels are  "  not  the  accounts  of  eye-witnesses,  but 
only  fragmentary  notes  recorded  by  men  who  lived 
at  a  distance  from  the  events,  and  who,  though 
they  penned  down  many  authentic  notices  and 
speeches,  collected  also  all  sorts  of  legendary  tradi- 
tions, and  embellished  them  in  i^art  by  inventions  of 
their  own."  It  is  far  easier  to  believe  the  most 
stupendous  miracle  recorded  in  the  Bible  than  such 
nonsense  as  that. 


64  IS    THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

Let  US  suppose  that  a  book  is  published  the 
present  year,  purporting  to  contain  the  speeches 
and  acts  of  Congress  that  met  one  hundred  years 
ago,  while  it  is  made  up  of  all  sorts  of  legendary 
traditions  and  inventions  of  the  writer  or  writers. 
What  would  be  the  probability  of  its  success? 
None  whatever.  The  judges,  and  lawyers,  and 
l)oliticians,  and  learned  men,  would  instantly  say, 
it  was  never  heard  of  before,  and  they  would  dis- 
miss it  with  merited  contempt.  But  this  is  only  a 
feeble  illustration  of  the  impossible  thing  which 
Strauss  asks  us  to  believe  without  the  slightest 
evidence.  We  have  already  seen  that  twenty-two 
of  the  books  of  the  New  Testament,  just  as  we 
have  them,  were  widely  disseminated  and  read 
during  the  life-time  of  the  Apostles,  and  extensively 
quoted  by  various  writers  immediately  after  the 
death  of  John.  Yet  according  to  the  theory  of 
Strauss,  we  must  suppose  that  men,  who  lived  at 
a  distance  from  the  events  narrated,  succeeded  so 
easily  and  so  universally  in  imposing  all  sorts  of 
legendary  traditions  and  inventions  of  their  own 
upon  all  the  Christians,  that  their  forgeries  were 
not  even  i^erceived.  We  must  suppose  that,  not- 
withstanding the  intense  love  exhibited  by  the 
early  disciples  for  their  sacred  writings,  notwith- 
standing the  watchful  jealousy  that  led  some  of 
them  to  hold  in  abeyance  a  few  of  the  minor  books 
of  the  New  Testament  until  their  authenticity  was 
established  by  the  most  conclusive  evidence,  so 
immediately  and  completely  did  these  spurious 
productions    sweep    away     all    that    had    been 


THE  CANON  OF   THE  NEW  TESTAMENT.        65 

previously  accepted  and  revered  as  genuine,  that  no 
question  was  ever  raised  concerning  them  by  friend 
or  foe.  Finally  we  must  suppose  that  the  forgery 
was  so  perfect,  it  has  never  been  detected  by  the 
keenest  criticism  of  eighteen  hundred  years,  a 
criticism  far  more  searching  and  unsparing  than 
was  ever  bestowed  upon  any  book,  or ^11  the  books 
of  the  world.  He  who  can  believe  this  can  believe 
the  most  astounding  miracle,  not  only  without 
testimony,  but  in  the  face  of  all  testimony. 

In  the  seventh  place,  if  the  Gospel  narratives 
were  written  by  persons  who  lived  at  a  distance 
from  the  events,  who  collected  all  sorts  of  legend- 
ary traditions,  and  embellished  them  in  part  by 
inventions  of  their  own,  the  history  of  the  world 
during  the  past  fifteen  centuries  is  founded  on  a 
lie,  for  the  history  of  the  Church  is  the  history  of 
the  world.  All  the  mighty  stimulus  to  the  intellect 
confessedly  found  in  the  New  Testament,  all  of 
its  stirring  incentives  to  enterprise  and  progress, 
all  of  its  emancipating  j)ower  from  the  bondage 
of  terror,  all  of  its  associations  with  liberty, 
all  of  its  elevating  and  hallowed  influence  upon 
home  and  society,  all  of  its  attractiveness  that  has 
won  the  admiration  of  the  noblest  minds,  all  of  its 
sweet  consolations  that  have  ministered  so  long  and 
so  often  to  the  hearts  of  the  sinful  and  sorrowing, 
all  of  the  examples  it  has  furnished  of  super- 
human courage,  and  unselfish  devotion,  and  of 
willing  sacrifice  for  the  good  of  our  race,  and  of 
sustained  holiness  amid  temptations  and  trials,  all 
of  the  joy  it  has  brought  to  the  dying,  as  the  name 
4 


66  IS  THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

of  Jesus  has  caused  the  pallid  lip  to  smile,  and  the 
dim  eye  to  kindle,  all,  all  is  a  delusion,  or  the 
triumph  of  forgery  !  Surely  the  skeptic  who  is  so 
fond  of  exalting  the  laws  of  nature  that  he  attempts 
to  dethrone  nature's  Law-giver,  must  see  that  if 
Strauss  is  correct,  the  laws  of  nature  that  govern 
the  human  mind  have  been  constantly  violated, 
under  the  government  of  a  righteous  God,  to  sus- 
tain a  monstrous  fraud  and  falsehood. 

Only  a  short  time  since,  Joseph  Barker  died  in 
the  faith  of  the  Gospel,  trusting  simj^ly  in  the 
blood  of  Christ  to  wash  away  his  deep  and 
accumulated  guilt.  For  many  years  he  was  a 
leading  Deist,  lecturing  throughout  Great  Britain 
and  the  United  States,  perfectly  familiar  with  the 
arguments  of  Strauss  and  other  infidels,  and  chal- 
lenging every  minister,  whose  attention  he  could 
engage,  to  public  discussion.  On  one  occasion 
when  he  was  leaving  his  house  to  stand  before  the 
people  as  an  ambassador  of  Satan,  his  little  child 
followed  him  to  the  door  and  said,  ^''  God  bless  you, 
Papa."  That  little  voice,  he  afterwards  declared, 
kept  ringing  in  his  heart.  *'  God  bless  me !"  he 
exclaimed;  ^' God  bless  me  for  what?  God  bless 
me  in  what?  For  hating  His  Son?  In  seeking  to 
destroy  His  word  ?"  Kor  could  he  get  rid  of  that 
voice  until  he  bowed  at  the  feet  of  the  crucified  but 
risen  Jesus,  and  found  jDardon  and  salvation  for 
the  chief  of  sinners. 

Dear  friends,  may  the  voice  of  some  little  child, 
a  voice  it  may  be  you  will  hear  no  more,  reach 
to-night  any  who  are  skeptical,  and  echo  the  gentle 


THE   CANON  OF  THE  NEW  TESTAMENT.        67 

and  entreating  voice  that  still  says,  "Come  nnto 
me,  all  ye  that  labor  and  are  heavy  laden,  and  I 
will  give  you  rest."  But  whether  you  heed  the 
voice  of  Jesus,  or  turn  away  from  it  in  unbelief 
and  indifference ;  whether  you  accept  at  last  His 
own  word,  that  all  your  hatred  can  not  change  His 
pity  nor  chill  His  love,  or  persist  in  your  enmity 
to  One  who  has  never  wronged  you  j  whether 
you  permit  Him  to  make  you  happy  here  and 
hereafter,  or  choose  to  go  your  own  way  into  a 
dark  eternity,  let  His  unworthy  servant  say  in  all 
sincerity  and  afl^ection,  "  God  bless  you,  God  bless 
you." 


III. 

THE  CHARACTER  OF  JESUS. 

WITH  regard  to  tlie  present  discussion,  it  is  of 
no  consequence  whether  the  four  Gospels 
were  composed  by  the  authors  to  whom  they  are 
ascribed,  or  by  persons  of  whom  the  world  has 
never  heard.  Nor  is  it  of  importance  to  inquire 
whether  the  history  is  "  true  and  reliable  as  a 
whole,  and  in  its  details,"  or  whether  its  writers 
"  collected  all  sorts  of  legendary  traditions,  and 
embellished  them  in  part  by  inventions  of  their 
own."  Whatever  conclusion  infidels  may  choose 
to  reach  concerning  such  questions,  the  undeniable 
fact  still  remains  that  in  the  Gospels  we  find  the 
portrait  of  a  character,  which  is  the  most  marvel- 
ous miracle  of  the  ages.  If  there  was  a  real  person 
whose  likeness  is  here  accurately  drawn.  He  Him- 
self is  the  greatest  of  miracles  ;  if  it  is  only  a  fancy 
sketch  at  which  we  are  called  to  look,  the  genius 
to  paint  the  i)icture  is  a  still  greater  miracle,  were 
it  i)Ossible ;  as  "  the  inventor,"  Eousseau  well 
says,  "  would  be  a  more  astonishing  character 
than  the  hero." 

Strauss  begins  his  "Historical  Outline  of  the 
Life  of  Jesus"  by  referring  to  the  influence  of 
"Judaism,"   and  of  "Greco-Roman  cultivation;" 


THE   CHARACTER   OF   JESUS.  69 

but  it  is  clear  that  Jesus  is  not  the  fruit  or  result 
of  either.  The  former,  iu  the  sense  in  which 
Strauss  understands  it,  as  a  mere  human  culture 
and  development,  found  its  expression  and  mani- 
fested its  vitality,  at  the  time  Jesus  was  horn, 
in  the  three  sects  of  Pharisees,  Sadducees,  and 
Essenes.  But  according  to  the  biographers  of 
Christ,  He  was  in  sharp  conflict  with  the  two  first 
through  the  whole  of  his  brief  public  ministry, 
and  with  the  asceticism  and  mysticism  of  the  last 
it  is  obvious  at  a  glance  that  He  had  no  sympathy 
whatever.  As  to  Greco- Eoman  cultivation,  Strauss 
admits  "  it  shows  itself  in  the  resemblance  of  the 
Greek  gods  to  men,"  and  then  adds,  "  It  was  pre- 
cisely because  the  Divinity  did  not  confront  the 
Greek  in  the  form  of  a  commanding  law,  that  the 
Greek  was  compelled  to  be  a  law  to  himself: 
because  he  did  not,  like  the  Jew,  see  his  whole  life 
ordered  for  him,  step  by  step,  by  religious  ordi- 
nance, he  was  compelled  to  seek  for  a  moral  rule 
within  his  own  mind.  That  this  was  a  difficult 
I)roblem,  that  the  way  to  the  solution  of  it  led  over 
dangerous  ground,  we  see  by  the  corruption  of 
morals  which  broke  iu  over  the  Greek  nation  after 
the  most  brilliant  and  flourishing  age,  by  the  arbi- 
trary manner  in  which  the  contemporary  Sophists 
confounded  all  moral  notions,"  (Yol.  I.  p.  244). 

It  is  true  that  Judaism  in  its  sacred  books  had 
spoken  repeatedly  of  the  coming  of  a  mighty  and 
even  a  divine  Deliverer,  from  the  day  the  promise 
was  made  to  the  fallen  parents  of  our  race,  that 
the  seed  of  the  woman  should  bruise  the  head  of 


70  IS    THE   BIBLE   TRUE? 

the  tempter  (Gen.  iii.  15).  The  extraordinary  man- 
ner of  His  birth  is  told,  as  when  it  is  said,  "  Behold^ 
a  virgin  shall  conceive,  and  bear  a  son,  and  shall 
call  his  name  Immanuel,''  (Isa.  vii.  14;  Matt.  i.  23). 
The  place  of  His  nativity  is  mentioned,  as  when  it 
is  said,  "  Thou,  Bethlehem  Ephratah,  though  thou 
be  little  among  the  thousands  of  Judah,  3  et  out  of 
thee  shall  he  come  forth  unto  me  that  is  to  be  ruler 
in  Israel  5  whose  goings  forth  have  been  from  of 
old,  from  everlasting,"  (Mic.  v.  2  ;  Matt.  ii.  6).  His 
remarkable  character  and  career  are  described  in 
glowing  language,  as  when  it  is  said,  "  Unto  us  a 
child  is  born,  unto  us  a  son  is  given,  and  the  gov- 
ernment shall  be  upon  his  shoulders  -,  and  his  name 
shall  be  called  Wonderful,  Counsellor,  The  mighty 
God,  The  everlasting  Father  [or  rather  the  Father 
of  the  ages  to  come],  The  Prince  of  Peace.  Of  the 
increase  of  his  government  and  peace  there  shall 
be  no  end,  u]3on  the  throne  of  David,  and  upon  his 
kingdom,  to  order  it,  and  to  establish  it  with 
judgment  and  with  justice,  from  henceforth  even 
forever,"  (Isa.  ix.  6,  7).  To  these  i^assages  might 
be  added  scores  of  quotations  from  the  ancient 
writings  of  the  Jews,  distinctly  predicting  both  the 
leading  events  and  the  minutest  incidents  in  the 
life,  teachings,  works,  betrayal,  suiferings,  death, 
resurrection,  and  second  coming  of  the  promised 
Messiah ;  and  Strauss  imagines  that  such  predic- 
tions suggested  to  the  forgers  or  inventors  of 
the  Gospel  history  the  propriety  of  having  them 
fultilled  by  Jesus  of  Nazareth.  But  it  will  be 
observed  that  nowhere  in  the  writings  of  the  Jews 


THE   CHARACTER  OF  JESUS.  71 

do  we  learn  liow  a  virgin  is  to  conceive,  and  bring 
forth  a  son,  whose  name  indicated  that  He  was 
Immanuel,  God  manifest  in  the  flesh.  The  invent- 
ors of  the  New  Testament  history  were  left  to  their 
own  invention  to  solve  the  mystery. 

It  is  true  that  Greco-Eoman  cultivation  ever  and 
anon  sounded  a  faint  j)relude  of  the  song  of  incar- 
nation, and  told  out  the  longings  of  many  an 
earnest  spirit,  as  that  of  Socrates,  for  the  descent 
of  Deity  to  the  earth,  when  its  mythology  described 
the  birth  of  beings  half  human  and  half  divine. 
But  these  beings  were  invariably  associated  with 
stories  that  were  coarse,  and  low,  aud  sensual,  and 
shameful;  for  they  were  represented  as  the  off- 
spring of  gods  who  had  become  fascinated  with  the 
beauty  of  mortal  women.  Greco-Roman  cultiva- 
tion, at  the  very  height  of  its  splendid  attainments, 
could  not  rise  to  the  thought  of  its  divinities  as 
exempt  from  h  uman  vices  ;  for  having  none  other 
than  a  human  standard  by  which  to  form  an  esti- 
mate of  the  superior  intelligences,  it  necessarily 
attributed  to  the  unknown  gods  the  weaknesses  of 
men,  and  then  experienced  the  inevitable  reaction 
in  an  ever-increasing  immorality,  that  at  last  swept 
like  a  flood  over  the  two  proudest  empires  of 
antiquity.  The  revolting  sketch  which  Paul  draws 
in  the  first  chapter  of  his  Epistle  to  the  Eomans 
of  the  state  of  Greek  and  Eoman  society  is  pre- 
sented in  still  darker  colors  by  heathen  and  infidel 
writers.  Rousseau,  for  example,  tells  us  that  ^'  the 
paganism  of  the  ancient  workl  produced,  indeed, 
abominable  gods,  who  on  earth  would  have  been 


72  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

shunned  or  punished  as  monsters,  and  wlio  offered, 
as  a  picture  of  supreme  haj^piness,  only  crimes  to 
commit,  and  passions  to  satiate.^' 

How  comes  it,  then,  that  the  inventors  of  the 
Gospel  history,  rude,  uneducated,  belonging  to  the 
lowest  class,  and  living  at  an  age  of  universal  vice 
and  corruption,  brought  their  Deity  to  earth  in  a 
way  that  has  never  yet  shocked  the  sensibilities  of 
the  purest  and  most  refined  !  Their  statement  is 
that  the  angel  Gabriel  said  to  the  virgin,  "Fear 
not,  Mary,  for  thou  hast  found  favour  with  God. 
And,  behold,  thou  shalt  conceive  in  thy  womb,  and 
bring  forth  a  son,  and  shalt  call  his  name  Jesus 
[the  Lord  of  Salvation].  He  shall  be  great,  and 
shall  be  called  the  Son  of  the  Highest :  and  the 
Lord  God  shall  give  unto  him  the  throne  of  his 
father  David :  and  he  shall  reign  over  the  house  of 
Jacob  forever ;  and  of  his  kingdom  there  shall  be 
no  end.  Then  said  Mary  unto  the  angel,  How 
shall  this  be,  seeing  I  know  not  a  man  ?  And  the 
angel  answered  and  said  unto  her,  The  Holy  Ghost 
shall  come  upon  thee,  and  the  power  of  the  Highest 
shall  overshadow  thee ;  therefore  that  holy  thing 
which  shall  be  born  of  thee  shall  be  called  the  Son 
of  God,"  (Luke  i.  30-35).  This  is  the  whole  of  the 
wondrous  story,  and  while  it  can  not  cause  in  the 
most  unsullied  soul  the  slightest  shrinking,  the 
most  debased  dare  not  tarnish  it  with  a  breath  of 
j)ollution.  Nothing  could  be  more  delicate,  more 
modest,  more  entirely  elevated  above  all  taint  of 
earth ;  and  the  bitterest  skeptic,  who  retains  a 
particle  of  decency  or  self-respect  will  bow  before 


THE   CHARACTER   OF   JESUS.  73 

the  awful  mystery  in  silence,  if  not  with  the  hom- 
age of  veneration.  Even  Strauss,  cold,  unfeeling, 
unsparing  in  his  savage  criticism,  does  not  hesitate 
to  say,  "  The  view  that  Jesus  was  begotten  by  the 
Holy  Ghost  in  the  womb  of  a  virgin  might  indeed, 
as  ai)ove  explained,  be  reconciled  with  the  Jewish 
idea  of  God,  by  the  exclusion  of  every  sensuous 
element  from  the  conception,"  (Vol.  II.  p.  55). 

The  same  amazing  skill  and  utter  separation  from 
all  that  is  gross  or  grotesque,  we  at  once  discover 
in  the  brief  allusion  of  the  Gospel  history  to  the 
childhood  of  Jesus.  We  are  told  that  ''  the  child 
grew,  and  waxed  strong  in  si)irit,  filled  with  wis- 
dom ;  and  the  grace  of  God  was  uj)on  him."  When 
twelve  years  of  age,  he  is  represented  as  accom- 
panying Joseph  and  Mary  to  Jerusalem  at  the  feast 
of  the  passover,  and  on  their  way  home  he  was 
missed  from  the  group  of  their  kinsfolk  and  ac- 
quaintance, with  whom  they  supposed  he  was 
travelling.  Eeturning  to  the  city,  "after  three 
days  they  found  him  in  the  temple,  sitting  in  the 
midst  of  the  doctors,  both  hearing  them,  and  ask- 
ing them  questions."  There  was  nothing  pert, 
nothing  offensive  in  His  manner,  nothing  that 
assumed  superiority,  nothing  that  was  done  for 
display  or  effect ;  and  hence  the  only  record  is, 
"  all  that  heard  him  were  astonished  at  his  under- 
standing and  answers."  His  mother  reproved  Him 
for  the  anxiety  and  sorrow  she  had  felt  on  account 
of  His  absence,  and  He  replied,  "  How  is  it  that  ye 
sought  me  ?  wist  ye  not  that  I  must  be  about  my 
Father's  business  I     Mary  understood  not  what 


74  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE  ? 

He  meant,  and  He  went  down  with  her  and  Joseph, 
"  and  came  to  Kazareth,  and  was  subject  unto 
them :  but  his  mother  kept  all  these  sayings  in  her 
heart,"  yLuke  ii.  40-51).  Such  is  the  reference  to 
His  childhood ;  "  and  in  this  respect,"  says  Horace 
Bushnell,  ''  the  early  character  of  Jesus  is  a  picture 
that  stands  by  its. If.  In  no  other  case,  that  we 
remember,  has  it  ever  entered  the  mind  of  a 
biographer,  in  drawing  a  character,  to  represent  it 
as  beginning  with  a  spotless  childhood.  .  .  . 
Commonly  a  certain  pleasure  is  taken  in  showing 
how  the  many  wayward  sallies  of  the  boy  are,  at 
length,  reduced  by  discipline  to  the  character  of 
wisdom,  justice,  and  x^ublic  heroism  so  much 
admired.  Besides,  if  any  writer,  of  almost  any 
age,  will  undertake  to  describe,  not  merely  a  si)ot- 
less,  but  a  superhuman  or  celestial  childhood,  not 
having  the  reality  before  him,  he  must  be  somewhat 
more  than  human  himself,  if  he  does  not  pile 
together  a  mass  of  clumsy  exaggerations,  and  draw 
and  overdraw,  till  neither  heaven  nor  earth  can 
find  any  veri-similitude  in  the  i)icture,"  (Nature 
and  the  Supernatural,  p.  280). 

That  this  is  true  will  be  admitted  by  all  who  are 
familiar  with  the  manner  in  which  heathen  writers 
of  antiquity  treated  the  childhood  of  their  demi- 
gods, or  with  the  description  given  by  Josephus  of 
the  childhood  of  Moses,  or  with  the  stories  told  of 
the  childhood  of  Jesus  in  the  Apocryphal  Gospels, 
that  were  undoubtedlj^  written  by  well-meaning  men 
very  near  the  time  of  the  Apostles.  These  last 
state  that  Mary  gave  to  the  wise  men  from  the 


THE   CHARACTER   OF  JESUS.  75 

East  one  of  her  Infant's  swaddling  cloths,  which, 
on  their  return  to  their  own  country,  they  wor- 
shipped, and  then  cast  it  into  the  fire,  but  it  was 
not  consumed ;  that  having  washed  the  swaddling 
cloths  and  hung  them  on  a  post  to  dry,  a  son  of  the 
chief  priest  put  one  on  his  head,  and  being  posses- 
sed of  devils,  they  left  him ;  that  Jesus,  kissed  by 
a  bride  made  dumb  by  sorceries,  cured  her;  that 
a  leprous  girl  was  cured  by  water  in  which  He 
was  washed;  that  a  young  man  who  had  been 
bewitched,  and  turned  into  a  mule,  was  cured  by 
Jesus  being  put  on  his  back,  and  was  married  to 
the  girl  healed  of  leprosy ;  that  He  caused  a  well 
to  spring  from  a  sycamore  tree,  and  Mary  washed 
His  coat  in  it,  and  balsam  grew  there  from  His 
sweat;  that  a  girl,  having  received  one  of  His 
swaddling  cloths  from  the  Virgin,  she  showed  it  to 
Satan,  who  had  sucked  her  blood,  and  flames  and 
burning  coals  proceeded  from  it,  and  fell  upon  him ; 
that  He  made  clay  birds,  and  caused  them  to  fly; 
that  He  turned  His  playfellows  into  kids;  that  He 
killed  a  boy  who  had  broken  down  His  fish  pools, 
and  another  boy  who  ran  against  Him ;  that, 
refusing  to  say  His  letters,  He  withered  the  hand 
of  the  school-master  who  intended  to  whip  Him, 
and  struck  him  dead ;  and  tliat  He  i)erformed,  as  a 
child,  a  vast  number  of  similar  miracles,  which  it 
would  be  too  tedious  and  too  painful  to  mention. 
The  question  instantly  arises,  why  did  not  Matthew, 
Mark,  Luke,  and  John,  record  such  repulsive  fables 
of  His  childhood,  or  if  they  did  not  write  the  four 
Gospels,  why  did  the  forgers,  who  "  collected  all 


76  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE  1 

sorts  of  legendary  traditions,  and  embellished  them 
in  part  by  inventions  of  their  own,"  so  carefully 
refrain,  against  the  whole  spirit  of  their  age,  from 
one  word  that  could  cause  the  holiest  and  most 
cultivated  of  men  to  experience  even  a  momentary 
recoil?  There  is  nothing  inappropriate,  nothing 
impossible  to  a  child  in  their  narrative;  but  the 
single  glimpse  they  give  us  of  His  early  days  is  in 
striking  harmony  with  His  birth,  and  with  His 
entire  character.  All  is  beautiful,  all  is  perfect,  all 
is  divine. 

"  When,"  as  Strauss  says,  "  after  these  prepara- 
tory considerations,  we  attempt  to  aj)proach  nearer 
to  the  Person  of  Him  for  whom  it  was  reserved  to 
pronounce  the  word  which  was  to  solve  the  riddle 
of  the  struggling  time,"  (Vol.  I.  p.  252),  and  come 
to  consider  His  public  life,  whatever  view  may  be 
taken  of  that  life,  it  remains  before  the  world  a 
miracle,  in  comx:>arison  with  which  every  other 
miracle  is  of  little  moment.  We  behold  a  meek 
and  lowly  man  coming  forth  from  the  obscure  and 
despised  village  of  Nazareth,  the  reputed  son  of  a 
carpenter,  without  education,  without  a  knowledge, 
so  far  as  the  record  goes,  of  a  single  book  com- 
posed by  any  of  the  masters  of  human  thought 
who  had  preceded  Him.  "  And  yet  this  Jesus  of 
Nazareth,"  as  Schaff,  a  German  fully  the  equal  of 
Strauss  in  intellect  and  literary  attainments,  well 
says,  "  without  money  and  arms,  conquered  more 
millions  than  Alexander,  Caesar,  Mohammed,  and 
Napoleon;  without  science  and  learning,  he  shed 
more  light  on  things  human  and  divine  thjin  all 


THE   CHARACTER   OF   JESUS.  77 

philosophers  and  scholars  combined ;  without  the 
eloquence  of  schools,  he  spoke  such  words  of  life 
as  were  never  spoken  before  or  since,  and  produced 
effects  which  lie  beyond  the  reach  of  any  orator  or 
poet;  without  writing  a  single  line,  he  set  more 
pens  in  motion,  and  furnished  themes  for  more 
sermons,  orations,  discussions,  learned  volumes, 
works  of  art,  and  sweet  songs  of  praise,  than  the 
whole  army  of  great  men  of  ancient  and  modern 
times.  Born  in  a  manger,  and  crucified  as  a  male- 
factor, he  now  controls  the  destinies  of  the  civilized 
world,  and  rules  a  spiritual  empire  which  embraces 
one-third  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  globe,"  (Person 
of  Christ,  p.  49). 

Renan  says  of  Him,  ''  Neither  directly  nor  indi- 
rectly, did  any  element  of  Hellenic  culture  make 
its  way  to  Jesus  ;'^  and  "  happily  for  him,  he  knew 
no  more  of  the  gro,tesque  scholasticism  which  was 
taught  at  Jerusalem,  and  which  was  soon  to  con- 
stitute the  Talmud,"  (Life  of  Jesus,  p.  75).  Having 
received,  therefore,  none  of  the  advantages  of 
mental  training  in  any  school,  sect,  or  party,  He 
began  His  public  career  by  gathering  around  Him 
a  few  unlettered  fishermen.  That  career  continued 
for  only  three  years,  and  then  abruptly  terminated 
on  the  cross,  while  He  was  still  almost  a  youth, 
and  before  the  period  when  other  men,  as  a  rule, 
have  wrought  achievements  that  leave  the  faintest 
foot-prints  on  the  sands  of  time.  Daring  the  brief 
interval  His  associates  were  very  often  the  disrepu- 
table, stigmatized  as  "  publicans  and  sinners,"  and 
generally  the  poor,  with  the  exception  of  "  Joanna, 


78  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

the  wife  of  Chuza,  Herod's  steward,"  and  Joseph  of 
Arimathea,  a  rich  man  of  whom  it  is  recorded  that 
he  was  "  a  disciple  of  Jesus,  but  secretly  for  fear  of 
the  Jews."  B ut  He  never  uttered  a  word  th  at  could 
tend  to  make  the  poor  dissatisfied  with  their  condi- 
tion, or  envious  of  those  in  a  higher  rank,  as  shown 
by  the  fact  that  to  this  day  Red  Republicans  and 
Communists,  clamoring  for  a  reform  that  would 
spare  nothing  of  the  past,  and  contending  for  what 
they  call  the  rights  of  humanity  in  the  forcible 
uplifting  of  the  masses,  and  the  violent  levelling  of 
social  distinctions,  hate  Him  as  the  greatest 
obstacle  in  the  way  of  accomplishing  their  reck- 
less schemes,  and  of  realiziijg  their  wilder  dreams. 
He  was  then  neither  radical  nor  conservative,  but 
l^ursued  his  mission  apart  from  all  the  distractions 
of  earthly  questions,  "  like  ships  in  seas,  while  in, 
above  the  world ;"  like  an  unsoiled  sunbeam  i^ass- 
ing  through  a  dirty  moat  surrounding  the  castle 
of  divine  truth. 

Thus  refusing  to  become  identified  with  any  caste 
or  strife  of  temporal  interest.  His  was  the  broadest  ^ 
and  most  universal  life  crowded  into  those  three 
immense  years  that  has  ever  been  known.  Other 
great  men  are  generally  bounded  by  national  lines 
and  aims ;  and  indeed  it  is  by  the  very  intensity  of 
their  national  ambition  and  devotion  they  .usually 
attain  their  greatness.  Strauss  closes  his  preface 
to  the  Life  of  Jesus  by  saying,  "  I  joyfully  hailed 
the  work  of  Renan  on  its  appearance,  when  my 
own  was  nearly  completed,  as  the  sign  of  a  gen- 
erally felt  want ;  on  closer  acquaintance  I  accept 


THE   CHARACTER   OF   JESUS.  79 

it  respectfully,  and  though  by  no  means  tempted 
by  its  example  to  alter  my  own  plan,  I  may  say  that 
all  I  wish  is  to  have  written  a  book  as  suitable  for 
Germany  as  Kenan's  is  for  France."  He  does  not 
seem  to  rise  in  his  purpose  above  a  book  that  will 
do  for  Germany  what  he  expects  Eenan's  book  to 
do  for  France ;  but  Jesus,  against  whom  he  hurls 
his  poisoned  darts  with  such  relentless  ferocity, 
embraces  Germany  and  France  and  all  the  world  in 
His  far-reaching  love.  Frederick  the  Great  was 
nothing  except  to  Prussia ;  Wellington  was  mighty 
only  for  Old  England;  Kapoleon  bound  the  glory 
of  France  to  the  chariot  of  his  vaulting  ambition ; 
even  Washington  can  not  touch  the  heart  of  one 
who  believes  in  the  divine  right  of  kings,  and  the 
advantages  of  monarchy ;  while  Jesus  addresses 
men  of  all  climes  and  races  with  equal  directness 
and  sympathy  and  i)ower.  Shakspeare  is  perhaps 
the  most  cosmopolitan  and  many-sided  of  all  unin- 
spired writers ;  and  yet  there  are  millions  to  whom 
his  words  would  have  no  significance,  because  they 
are  too  illiterate  to  feel  any  admiration  for  the  play 
of  his  poetic  genius,  or  too  stolid  under  the  pressure 
of  hard  toil  and  wearing  anxiety  and  heavy  sorrow 
to  care  for  the  entertainment  he  furnishes  in  his 
wonderful  delineations  of  human  character.  But 
mention  the  race,  or  the  class  in  societ}^,  or  the 
individual  in  any  continent  or  on  any  island,  to 
whom  the  sayings  of  Jesus,  as  recorded  in  the 
four  Gosi^els,  would  be  inappropriately  addressed. 
They  are  daily  read  in  Greenland,  and  Lapland, 
and  China,  and  India,  and  Africa,  and  the  capitals 


80  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

of  Europe,  and.  arnoDg  North  American  Indians, 
touching,  as  if  with  the  finger  of  God,  every  con- 
science, and  finding  a  response  in  every  heart. 
The  king  in  his  palace  and  the  doomed  prisoner  in 
his  cell,  the  profound  philosopher  and  the  ignorant 
peasant,  the  leader  of  armies  and  the  slave  in  his 
fetters,  the  spirit  bright  with  gladness  and  the  soul 
sinking  beneath  a  burden  of  grief,  have  for  eighteen 
centuries  hung  over  these  sayings  with  personal 
concern,  and  derived  from  them  light  and  strength 
and  solace  and  victory.  And  is  this  the  work  of 
unknown  men,  who  "  collected  all  sorts  of  legend- 
ary traditions,  and  embellished  them  in  part  by 
inventions  of  their  own  f 

Advancing  in  our  investigation,  we  are  at  once 
struck  with  the  humility  and  modesty  of  His  bear- 
ing, as  described  in  the  Gospel  history.  According 
to  the  record  He  never  manifested  the  least  ostenta- 
tion, nor  striving  for  effect,  nor  self-conceit.  On 
the  other  hand.  He  instantly  impressed  every 
beholder  by  His  unaffected  lowliness.  He  sought 
not  the  notice  of  the  rich  and  powerful ;  He  courted 
not  the  applause  of  the  multitude  ;  He  yielded  not 
to  the  threats  and  rage  of  those  whose  enmity  was 
roused  by  His  solemn  and  searching  words.  On 
one  occasion  when  the  fickle  populace  would  have 
crowned  Him  as  their  expected  Deliverer  from  the 
yoke  of  Eoman  oppression.  He  retired  from  their 
view ;  on  another  occasion  when  they  thought  the 
Kingdom  of  God  would  immediately  appear.  He 
uttered  a  parable  that  indicated  His  withdrawal 
into    a    far    country    to    receive    for    Hi^mself    a 


THE  CHARACTER  OP  JESUS.  81 

Kingdom,  which  He  would  win  in  the  face  of  His 
rejection  by  His  own  citizens ;  and  on  still  another 
occasion,  when  their  Hosannas  rent  the  air. 
He  knew  they  were  tuning  their  voices  for  the 
frenzied  shout,  ^'  Crucify  him,  Crucify  him."  So 
indifferent  was  He  to  public  opinion  that  many  of 
His  mightiest  works,  which  would  have  convinced 
the  doubtful,  and  silenced  the  cavilling,  He  straitly 
commanded  should  not  be  made  known ;  and  as  far 
as  possible,  He  shunned  the  gaze  of  the  curious 
crowd,  save  when  called  to  walk  the  open  i)ath  of 
obedience  to  the  Father's  will.  His  favorite  resorts 
were  the  lonely  mountain  side,  the  sea-shore,  with 
the  melody  of  its  waves,  or  the  houses  of  the 
humble  f  and  so  quiet,  so  gentle,  so  far  from  dis- 
play were  His  movements,  He  is  declared  to  have 
fulfilled  the  Scripture,  "  He  shall  not  strive,  nor 
cry ;  neither  shall  any  man  hear  his  voice  in  the 
streets.  A  bruised  reed  shall  he  not  break,  and 
smoking  flax  shall  he  not  quench,  till  he  send  forth 
judgment  unto  victory,"  (Matt.  xii.  19,  20).  No 
skeptic,  however  eager  his  search  to  discover 
imperfection  in  the  narrative  of  His  life,  has  ever 
yet  accused  Him  of  vanity  ;  for  His  own  testimony 
and  that  of  His  Ai)ostles  are  self-evident,  "  I  came 
down  from  heaven,  not  to  do  mine  own  will,  but 
the  will  of  him  that  sent  me,"  (John  vi.  38) ;  and 
"  even  Christ  pleased  not  himself,"  (Eom.  xv.  3). 

But  with  all  this.  His  assertions  concerning  His 

relation  to  God,  and  His  claim  upon  the  confidence, 

the  love,  the  worship,  and  the  entire  devotedness 

of  every  member  of  our  race,  are  indeed  amazing, 

5 


82  IS  THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

and  altogether  unaccountable  and  monstrous  and 
blasphemous,  if  He  is  reduced  to  any  merely  human 
classification.  Here  it  is  important  to  notice  the 
remarkable  admission  of  Strauss  when  he  says, 
"  In  the  history  of  his  public  life,  there  is,  as  the 
analysis  contained  in  the  former  book  has  shown, 
much  that  must  be  recognized  as  historical  both  in 
the  facts,  and  especially  in  the  speeches  of  Jesiis,''^ 
(Yol.  II.  p.  116).  Much,  then,  must  be  recognized 
as  historical,  that  is,  as  truly  related,  especially  in 
the  speeches  of  Jesus,  for  the  intellect  of  Strauss 
is  far  too  keen  not  to  perceive  that  it  will  hardly 
do  to  trace  the  speeches  scattered  throughout  the 
Gospels  to  all  sorts  of  legendary  traditions,  and 
inventions  of  anonymous  writers.  With  this  im- 
portant admission  in  view,  let  us  glance  at  these 
speeches,  beginning  with  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount 
which  excites  the  admiration  of  Strauss. 

We  find  Jesus,  after  pronouncing  a  blessing  on 
those  who  had  never  been  blessed  before,  enlarging 
the  scope  and  deepening  the  significance  of  the  law 
proclaimed  to  Moses  amid  the  imposing  tokens  of 
Jehovah's  presence,  lifting  it  up  into  a  higher 
sphere,  and  adding  to  its  requirements  with  the 
calmness  and  assurance  of  the  original  Law-giver. 
He  then  determines  with  absolute  authority  the 
manner  of  bestowing  alms,  the  question  of  prayer, 
and  the  mode  of  fasting ;  forbids  anxious  thought 
about  the  things  of  this  life  ;  lays  a  j)Ositive  arrest 
upon  the  common  habit  of  harshly  judging  others  j 
reveals  the  fatherly  character  of  God ;  exposes  the 
deceptions  of  false  teachers  j    declares  that  they 


THE   CHARACTER  OF  JESITS.  83 

will  staud  in  jiidgmeut  before  Himself  to  bear  the 
sentence  of  their  irrevocable  doom  ;  and  closes  His 
discourse  by  likening  those  who  hear  His  sayings, 
and  do  them,  to  a  wise  man  who  built  his  house 
upon  a  rock,  that  no  storm  can  shake,  nor  flood 
sweep  away. 

A  little  later  we  hear  Him  announcing  that  man 
must  follow  Him,  and  let  the  dead  bury  their  dead, 
(Matt.  viii.  22) ;  that  He  had  power  on  earth  to  for- 
give sins  (Matt.  ix.  6) ;  that  the  destiny  of  the  soul 
for  weal  or  for  woe  turns  upon  the  confession  of 
His  name  before  men  5  that  the  necessary  result  of 
His  mission  to  earth  must  be  variance  in  every 
household  divided  concerning  His  character ;  that 
He  must  be  loved  more  than  father  or  mother, 
more  than  son  or  daughter,  or  life  itself,  (Matt.  x. 
32-39) ;  that  all  things  are  delivered  unto  Him  of 
His  Father,  so  that  no  man  knoweth  the  Son,  but 
the  Father,  neither  knoweth  any  man  the  Father, 
save  the  Son,  and  he  to  whomsoever  the  Son  will 
reveal  Him  (Matt.  xi.  27) ;  that  a  greater  than 
Jonas  is  here,  a  greater  than  Solomon  is  here, 
(Matt.  xii.  41,  42);  that  during  the  period  of  His 
rejection  by  Israel  and  His  bodily  absence  from  the 
earth.  His  Kingdom  will  exist  in  mystery  and  con- 
cealment, but  at  the  end  of  the  age  He  will  send 
forth  His  angels,  and  sever  the  wicked  from  the 
righteous,  (Matt,  xiii.) ;  that  He  can  receive  without 
a  murmur  of  disapproval  the  worship  of  men  as  the 
Son  of  God,  (Matt.  xiv.  33) ;  that  all  the  evils  which 
defile  the  outward  man  flow  from  a  depraved  heart, 
(Matt.  XV.  19);  that  faith  in  Himself  will  gain  any 


84  IS   THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

victory,  (Matt.  xv.  28) ;  that  His  divinity  is  the 
rock  on  which  He  will  build  His  Church,  and  the 
gates  of  hell  shall  not  prevail  against  it,  (Matt, 
xvi.  18)  5  that  no  man  can  be  His  disciple  unless  he 
is  willing  to  renounce  self,  and  take  up  the  cross, 
and  follow  Him  unto  death  and  glory,  (Matt.  xvi. 
24-27),  that  His  transfiguration  was  not  to  be 
revealed  before  His  sufferings,  which  He  plainly 
predicted,  (Matt.  xvii.  9-23);  that  a  little  child  is 
the  symbol  of  true  greatness,  (Matt,  xviii.  1-14) ; 
that  we  may  keep  all  the  commandments  of  God, 
and  yet  without  supreme  devotion  to  Himself  lack 
that  which  will  secure  eternal  happiness,  (Matt, 
xix.  16-21) ;  that  the  Son  of  Man  came  not  to  be 
ministered  unto,  but  to  minister,  and  to  give  His 
life  a  ransom  for  many,  (Matt.  xx.  28) ;  that  His 
murder  by  the  Jews  would  lead  to  their  downfall 
as  a  nation,  (Matt.  xxi.  33-44) ;  that  He  is  not  only 
David's  son,  but  David's  Lord,  (Matt.  xxii.  42-45) ; 
that  He  would  often  have  gathered  the  children 
of  Jerusalem  together,  as  a  hen  gathereth  her 
chickens  under  her  wings  from  the  lowering  storm 
or  swooping  hawk,  but  they  would  not ;  and  as  a 
consequence  their  house  is  left  unto  them  desolate, 
until  in  the  extremity  of  their  woe  they  shall  say. 
Blessed  is  he  that  cometh  in  the  name  of  the  Lord, 
(Matt,  xxiii.  37-39) ;  that  there  will  be  sorrows  and 
troubles  and  wars  and  rumors  of  wars  during  the 
entire  interval  between  His  departure  from  the 
earth  and  His  return,  when  He  shall  come  in  His 
glory,  and  all  the  holy  angels  with  Him,  and  before 
Him   shall  be  gathered  all  nations,   (Matt.  xxiv. 


THE   CHARACTER  OF  JESUS.  85 

XXV.);  that  His  blood  is  shed  for  many  for  the 
remission  of  sins,  and  that  hereafter  He  shall  be 
seen  sitting  on  the  right  hand  of  power,  and  coming 
in  the  clouds  of  heaven,  (Matt.  xxvi.  28,  64);  that 
according  to  the  testimony  of  His  enemies  He  fore- 
told His  resurrection,  (Matt,  xxvii.  63) ;  and  that 
all  power  is  given  unto  Him  in  heaven  and  in  earth, 
(Matt,  xxviii.  18). 

Such  is  a  mere  glimpse  at  some  of  the  speeches 
in  the  single  Gospel  of  Matthew,  of  which  Strauss 
says,  "  We,  as  well  as  Baur,  have  always  consid- 
ered, and  still  do  consider,  the  Gospel  of  Matthew 
as  the  most  original,  and,  comparatively  speaking, 
the  most  trustworthy.  As  regards  the  speeches 
of  Jesus  in  particular,  notwithstanding  all  doubt 
upon  individual  points,  every  one  must  admit  that 
we  have  them  in  the  first  Gospel,  though  not 
unmixed  with  later  additions  and  modifications, 
still  in  a  purer  form  than  in  any  of  the  others," 
(Vol.  I.  p.  152).  But  what  shall  be  said  of  the 
speeches  just  mentioned,  so  hastily  and  imper- 
fectly, in  this  most  trustworthy  Gospel  ?  They  are 
found  in  every  chapter,  and  mich  are  the  amazing 
assertions  they  contain  and  the  high  claims  they 
put  forth,  the  only  choice  they  leave  is  between  a 
belief  in  His  true  and  proper  divinity,  and  a  belief 
in  the  grossness  and  madness  of  His  blasphemy. 
Those  who  hold  that  He  was  a  good  man,  and 
nothing  more,  are  utterly  illogical  and  inconsistent; 
for  they  go  too  far,  or  do  not  go  far  enough.  He 
constantly  declared  that  He  was  far  above  man  and 
angels  in  demanding  the  faith  and  obedience  of  the 


86  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE  ! 

race,  in  swaying  the  scepter  of  universal  empire,  in 
coming  at  the  last  day  to  judge  the  world;  and  if 
these  startling  declarations  are  not  true.  He  is  only 
to  be  scorned  as  a  base  impostor,  or  despised  and 
pitied  as  a  crazed  enthusiast.  Think  of  man  or 
angel  assuming  power  to  forgive  sins  ;  summoning 
the  world  to  follow  him  against  the  tenderest  calls 
of  natural  affection,  and  the  very  instinct  of  self- 
preservation  ;  bidding  the  laboring  and  heavy  laden 
of  earth's  toiling  and  sorrowful  population  come  to 
him  for  rest ;  proclaiming  his  future  advent  after 
death  to  sit  in  judgment  upon  countless  genera- 
tions, and  to  pronounce  the  sentence  of  eternity; 
and  how  quickly  the  boundless  effrontery  and  pre- 
posterous conceit  of  such  pretension  would  be 
scouted !  Yet  Jesus  set  up  these  pretensions, 
and  for  eighteen  hundred  years  they  have  been 
acknowledged  with  adoring  gratitude  by  millions 
of  all  classes  and  races,  embracing  the  most  intel- 
lectual, the  most  learned,  the  most  holy,  of  the 
human  family,  because  it  is  instantly  seen  that 
there  is  the  most  i^erfect  agreement  between  His 
lofty  claim  and  His  l»fty  character. 

The  speeches  recorded  in  the  Gospel  by  Matthew 
are  in  fullest  harmony  with  those  running  through 
the  other  Gospels,  especially  that  written  by  John, 
the  authenticity  of  which  Strauss  particularly 
assails,  contrary  to  his  friend  Eenan  and  other 
skeptics,  and  the  authenticity  of  which  has  been 
more  completely  vindicated  than  ever,  since  Strauss 
wrote  his  Life  of  Jesus.  But,  leaving  the  infidels 
to   settle   their  dispute  among  themselves,  it  is 


THE   CHARACTER   OF   JESUS.  .87 

enougli  to  know  that  the  meek  and  lowly  One 
distinctly  affirms  that  He  is  Lord  also  of  the  Sab- 
bath (Mark  ii.  28) ;  that  He  refuses  to  accept  the 
testimony  of  devils  to  His  Messiahship,  (Mark  iii. 
12) ;  that  He  declared  it  shall  be  more  tolerable  in 
the  day  of  judgment  for  Sodom  and  Gomorrah  than 
for  the  city  rejecting  the  testimony  of  His  disciples, 
(Mark  vi.  11) ;  that  these  disciples  addressed  Him 
without  rebuke  as  the  Christ,  (Mark  viii.  29) ;  that 
He  ]3romi8ed  a  reward  to  any  who  would  give  them 
only  a  cup  of  cold  water  because  they  belonged  to 
Christ,  (Mark  ix.  41) ;  and  that  on  His  trial,  when 
the  high  priest  asked  Him  the  question,  "  Art  thou 
the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the  Blessed!"  He  distinctly 
replied,  '*  I  am,"  and  was  condemned  to  death  for 
the  alleged  blasphemy,  (Mark  xiv.  61,  62). 

The  same  testimony  is  borne  by  Him  and  about 
Him  in  the  Gospel  of  Luke,  from  the  time  in  the 
first  chapter  when  His  birth  as  the  Son  of  God  was 
announced  to  the  Virgin,  and  John  the  Baptist  was 
called  the  prophet  of  the  Highest,  going  before  the 
face  of  the  Lord  to  prepare  His  ways,  down  to  the 
last  chapter,  where  Jesus  twice  asserts  that  all  the 
Old  Testament  Scriptures  were  written  concerning 
Himself.  The  same  testimony  is  given  by  John, 
certifying  that  He  was  in  the  beginning,  that  He 
was  with  God,  that  He  was  God,  that  all  things 
were  made  by  Him,  that  to  as  many  as  receive  Him 
in  His  true  character  He  gives  power  to  become 
the  sons  of  God,  that  He  is  the  only  begotten  Son, 
(i.  1-18) ;  that  He  came  down  from  heaven,  (iii.  13) ; 
that  salvation  hangs  upon  belief  in  Him,  as  the 


88  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

expression  of  God's  love  for  the  world,  (iii.  14-18) ; 
that  God  is  a  spirit,  and  must  be  worshipped  in 
spirit  and  in  truth,  (iv.  24) ;  that  the  Father  hath 
committed  all  judgment  unto  the  Son  in  order  that 
all  men  should  honor  the  Son,  even  as  they  honor 
the  Father,  (v.  22) ;  that  He  is  the  bread  of  God 
which  Cometh  down  from  heaven,  and  giveth  life 
to  the  world,  (vi.  33) ;  that  the  thirsty  are  invited 
to  come  unto  Him  and  drink,  (vii.  37) ;  that  before 
Abraham  was.  He  lived  as  the  i  am,  the  self- 
existent,  eternal,  unchangeable  One,  (viii.  58) ;  that 
He  was  the  Son  of  God,  worthy  of  worship,  (ix. 
35-38) ;  that  He  and  His  Father  are  one,  (x.  30) ; 
that  He  is  the  resurrection  and  the  life,  (xi.  25) ; 
that  if  lifted  up  from  the  earth.  He  will  draw  all 
men  unto  Him  (xii.  32) ,  that  the  Father  had  given 
all  things  into  His  hands,  and  that  He  was  come 
from  God,  and  went  to  God,  (xiii.  3) ;  that  He  is  the 
way,  the  truth,  and  the  life ;  that  prayer,  if  accept- 
able, must  be  offered  in  His  name;  that  He  sends 
the  Spirit  to  abide  with  His  people,  (xiv.) ;  that 
His  commandments  must  be  kept,  (xv.  14);  that 
the  office  of  the  Holy  Ghost  is  to  glorify  Him,  (xvi. 
14) ;  and  that  the  Father  will  glorify  Him,  with  His 
own  self,  with  the  glory  He  had  with  Him  before 
the  world  was,  (xvii.  5). 

Truly  all  this  is  wonderful,  and  apart  from  the 
exploded  idea  of  imposture  or  fanaticism,  which  is 
abandoned  by  all  intelligent  and  respectable  infi- 
dels, it  is  obviously  inexplicable  on  any  theory  that 
would  lower  Jesus  to  the  level  of  men.  He  was  a 
man,  but  he  was  more.     He  sat  weary  on  Jacob's 


THE   CHARACTER   OF   JESUS.  89 

well,  and,  therefore,  was  a  mau ;  but  He  lifted  the 
redeemed  soul  of  the  sinful  woman  into  the  joy  of 
eternal  life,  and,  therefore,  was  God.  He  slejjt 
upon  a  pillow  in  the  ship,  and,  therefore,  was  man; 
but  He  stilled  the  raging  of  the  tempest  with  a 
word,  and,  therefore,  was  God.  He  wept  at  the 
grave  of  Lazarus,  and,  therefore,  was  man  -,  but  He 
called  the  dead  man  from  the  tomb,  and,  therefore, 
was  God.  Thus  it  is  everywhere  throughout  the 
four  Gospels,  that  present  Him  as  the  Son  of  man 
and  Son  of  God,  man  and  God,  bound  by  the  sensi- 
tive ties  of  a  personal  experience  to  all  the  wants 
and  sinless  infirmities  of  humanity,  but  clothed 
with  the  attributes,  wearing  the  titles,  and  i>er- 
forming  the  works  of  God.  Strauss  says,  between 
God  and  man  there  is  "  a  gulf  not  to  be  passed," 
(Vol.  I.  p.  274^,  and  yet  he  afterwards  says,  "  While 
Jesus  was  forming  within  himself  this  cheerful  tone 
of  mind,  identical  with  that  of  God,  ...  he 
had,  to  speak  with  the  poet,  '  adopted  the  Deity 
into  his  will;'  hence,  for  him,  ^  that  Deity  had 
descended  from  his  throne  of  the  universe,  the 
gulf  had  been  filled  up,  the  dread  phenomenon  had 
vanished;'  in  him  men  had  passed  from  slavery  to 
freedom,"  (Vol.  I.  p.  281).  So  he  says  other  natures 
were  not  purified  until  they  had  gone  through 
struggles  and  violent  disruption,  the  shadowy  col- 
ors of  which  exist  forever,  "  and  something  harsh, 
severe  and  gloomy  clings  to  them  all  their  lives : 
but  of  this  in  Jesus  no  trace  is  found.  Jesus 
appears  as  a  beautiful  nature  from  the  first,  which 
had  only  to  develop  itself  out  of  itself,"  (p.  282). 


90  IS    THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

Again,  referring  to  many  of  the  sayings  of  Jesus, 
he  writes,  "  these  are  imperishable  words,  for  in 
them  truths  that  are  every  day  getting  fresh  cor- 
roboration are  enclosed  in  a  form  that  exactly  suits 
them,  and  is  at  the  same  time  universally  intelligi- 
ble," (Vol.  I.  p.  347).  Is  it  not  safe  to  infer  from 
Strauss's  own  premises  that  Jesus  crossed  the  gulf, 
and  became  the  sorely-needed  days-man  between 
God  and  us,  laying  His  hand  familiarly  upon  both  ? 
But  the  marvel  does  not  cease  with  these  remark- 
able assertions  on  His  part,  and  these  remarkable 
admissions  on  the  part  of  those  who  would  banish 
Him  from  the  earth ;  for  He  is  represented  in  the 
Gospels  as  affirming  not  only  His  spotless  inno- 
cence, but  His  absolute  holiness.  It  is  surprising 
to  read  the  comment  of  so  fine  a  mind  as  that  pos- 
sessed by  Strauss  upon  the  words  of  our  Lord  to 
the  rich  young  ruler,  *'  Why  callest  thou  me  good  ! 
There  is  none  good,  but  one,  that  is,  God,"  (Mark 
X.  18).  It  is  easy  to  see  that  our  Saviour  was 
meeting  the  inquirer  on  his  own  ground,  and 
answering  him  from  the  stand-point  the  latter  had 
taken,  when  he  looked  upon  Christ  as  nothing 
more  than  man.  If  this  were  true,  he  had  no  right 
to  call  Jesus  good,  for  none  is  good,  but  one,  that 
is  God.  But  everywhere  in  the  New  Testament  it 
is  declared  in  the  most  unequivocal  manner,  that 
Jesus  was  altogether  good,  that  the  devil  utterly 
failed  to  move  Him  a  hair's  breadth  from  His 
unswerving  integrity,  (Matt,  iv)  j  that  He  did  all 
things  well  (Mark  vii.  37) ;  that  He  always  did 
those  things  that  pleased  His  Father,  and  no  one 


THE    CHARACTER   OF  JESUS.  91 

could  convict  Him  of  siu,  (John  viii.  29,  46) ;  that 
the  prince  of  this  world  came  at  the  close  of  His 
ministry,  and  had  nothing  in  Him,  (John  xiv.  30) ; 
that  He  was  made  to  be  sin  for  us,  who  knew  no 
sin,  (2  Cor.  v.  21) ;  that  He  was  holy,  harmless, 
undefiled,  separate  from  sinners,  (Heb.  vii.  26) ; 
that  He  did  no  sin,  neither  was  guile  found  in  His 
mouth,  (1  Pet.  ii.  22).  He  never  manifested  the 
least  anxiety  about  the  salvation  of  His  own  soul  j 
never  exi^ressed  a  word  of  regret  for  anything  He 
had  done  or  said,  or  left  undone  and  unsaid ;  never 
shed  a  tear  of  repentance ;  never  asked  for  pardon  ; 
never  breathed  a  prayer  that  inspired  a  thought  of 
confession,  or  a  sense  of  moral  weakness,  but  with 
His  dying  breath  actually  commended  His  spirit  to 
the  Father ;  and  by  this  alone  He  is  raised  above 
the  life  of  all  other  men,  even  the  noblest  and  the 
holiest.  When,  therefore,  He  said  to  the  young 
ruler,  "  None  is  good,  but  one,  and  that  is  God," 
He  was  bearing  the  clearest  and  most  striking 
testimony  to  the  fact  of  His  real  divinity. 

If,  however,  it  is  true  that  the  most  perfect  human 
character  only  serves  by  its  shadows  and  imper- 
fections to  exhibit  in  brighter  light  the  character  of 
Jesus,  it  is  equally  true  that  He  surpasses  all 
others  in  the  matchless  harmony  of  His  graces  and 
excellences.  There  is  not  a  man  or  woman  living, 
nor  has  one  ever  lived,  with  a  single  illustrious 
exception,  however  noted  for  the  possession  of 
some  striking  virtue,  that  has  not  had  some  accom- 
panying defect  as  a  dark  back-ground  to  the  lovely 
picture.    Even  the  most  distinguished  saints  of  the 


92  IS  THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

Bible  had  their  faults,  and  marred  the  record  of 
their  lives  by  failures.  Abraham,  the  most  faithful 
mau,  uttered  a  falsehood,  at  the  risk  of  his  wife's 
dishonor,  to  shield  himself  from  imaginary  danger. 
Moses,  the  meekest  man  on  earth,  at  last  gave  way 
to  a  burst  of  passion  that  excluded  him  from  the 
promised  land.  Job,  the  most  patient  man,  opened 
his  mouth  and  cursed  his  day,  and  floundered  in 
the  mire  of  an  attempted  self- vindication,  until  the 
Almighty  silenced  him  by  a  voice  out  of  the  whirl- 
wind. Elijah,  the  bravest  man,  fled  in  terror  from 
the  threat  of  a  furious  woman,  and  wished  for  him- 
self that  he  might  die.  David,  so  honored  by  the 
Lord,  committed  crimes  that  have  left  a  deep  stain 
upon  his  memory,  and  often  caused  the  enemies  of 
God  to  blaspheme.  Jeremiah,  sanctified  from  his 
infancy,  hoped  that  the  man  who  communicated 
the  tidings  of  his  birth  to  his  father  might  be  as 
Sodom  and  Gomorrah.  Daniel  confessed  his  sins, 
as  well  as  the  sins  of  the  people.  Peter  not  only 
denied  his  Lord,  but  afterwards  dissembled,  and  was 
justly  withstood  to  the  face.  Paul  declared  himself 
a  Pharisee  to  escape  from  the  Jews,  and  was  com- 
pelled to  retract  his  angry  denunciations  of  the 
high  priest.  Even  John  would  call  down  fire  from 
heaven  to  consume  the  Samaritans  who  insulted 
his  Master. 

Why,  it  must  be  asked,  were  no  such  defects 
found  in  that  Master's  character?  Who  among 
men  was  capable  of  portraying  such  a  character  ? 
An  author's  productions  can  never  rise  above  the 
author's  thoughts,  as  the  conception  of  the  statue 


THE   CHARACTER   OF   JESITS.  93 

must  be  in  the  sculptor's  mind  before  it  can  be 
transferred  to  marble,  and  the  conception  of  the 
l^ainter's  sketch  must  be  previously  formed  before 
it  can  be  placed  upon  the  canvas.  But  where  was 
the  example  that  could  be  copied  by  the  uneducated 
writers  of  the  four  Gospels,  who  "collected  all 
sorts  of  legendary  traditions,  and  embellished 
them  in  part  by  inventions  of  their  own  f  How 
did  it  occur  to  them  to  describe  a  faultless  human 
being,  and  how  was  it  possible  for  them  to  succeed 
in  the  attempt,  unless  the  reality  was  before  them 
in  their  simple  and  artless  narratives,  and  unless 
their  pens  were  guided  by  the  Spirit  of  God? 
That  they  did  succeed  is  shown  by  the  fact  that 
even  the  most  accomplished  skeptics  do  not  under- 
take to  censure  any  word  or  act  of  Jesus,  and 
never  indicate  any  mistake  He  made  in  all  the  cir- 
cumstances of  sharp  trial  through  which  He 
X^assed.  He  was  truly  the  antitype  of  the  fine  flour 
used  in  the  meat  oftering,  for  there  was  nothing 
rough,  nothing  uneven,  nothing  salient  about  Him, 
simply  because  there  was  so  perfect  a  development 
of  all  the  perfections  of  His  nature.  It  may  be 
said  of  Him  in  a  far  higher  and  truer  sense  than  of 
Shakspeare's  hero, 

"  lUs  life  was  gentle,  and  the  elements 
So  mixed  in  him,  that  nature  might  stand  up 
And  say  to  all  the  world,  This  was  a  man  /" 

The  more  these  perfections  are  pondered  by  the 
devout  student  of  the  Bible,  the  more  clearly  they 
are  seen,  and  the  more  they  increase  in  beauty, 
until  many  a  time  he  finds  himself  exclaiming,  with 


94  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE  ! 

his  affections  all  aglow  and  with  tears  in  his  eyes, 
"Blessed  Jesus,  would  that  I  were  with  Thee!" 
If  any  one  imagines  he  can  improve  upon  the 
sayings  or  the  conduct  of  Christ  in  any  instance 
mentioned  by  the  writers  of  the  Gospels,  as  Bush- 
nell  says,  "  Give  us  then  this  one  experiment,  and 
see  if  it  does  not  prove  to  you  a  truth  that  is  of 
some  consequence ;  viz:  that  you  are  a  man,  and 
that  Jesus  Christ  is — more." 

That  such  a  being  should  work  miracles,  it  may 
be  said,  was  unavoidable.  With  Him  they  were  as 
natural  as  the  performance  with  us  of  the  most 
ordinary  and  familiar  acts,  and  hence  there  was  no 
effort,  no  struggling,  no  mighty  convulsion  of  soul 
to  accomplish  the  effects.  "  He  spake,  and  it  was 
done;  He  commanded,  and  it  stood  fast."  More- 
over, no  miracle  He  wrought  was  an  idle  exhibition 
of  power,  but  each  had  a  great  moral  end  to  serve, 
a  most  valuable  lesson  to  teach.  It  is  a  singular 
weakness  in  Strauss  that  he  assumes  from  be- 
ginning to  end  of  his  book  the  impossibility  of 
miracles ;  for  a  clearer  illustration  of  "  begging 
the  question  "  can  not  be  furnished  in  the  history 
of  literature.  There  is  a  vast  amount  of  ignorance 
on  this  subject,  which  only  shows  how  readily  most 
men  accept  popular  errors  as  truth,  and  hew  easily 
they  are  contented  with  shallow  thinking.  It  is 
commonly  supposed  that  a  miracle  is  a  direct  viola- 
tion, or  at  least  a  violent  suspension,  of  what  are 
called  the  laws  of  nature,  when  in  fact  it  is  neither. 
It  is  simply  a  withdrawal  for  a  time  from  the  action 
of  those  laws  of  a  person  in  whom  God  determines 


THE   CHARACTER  OF  JESUS.  95 

to  take  a  special  interest,  or  through  whom  He 
wishes  to  manifest  His  glory.  An  apple,  for  exam- 
ple, if  loosened  from  the  tree,  falls  to  the  earth  by 
the  law  of  gravitation,  but  if  a  man's  hand  arrests 
the  fall,  it  is  not  less  truly  a  miracle,  so  far  as  the 
laws  of  nature  are  concerned,  than  any  recorded  in 
the  Bible.  A  miracle  is  just  the  exhibition  of 
God's  majestic  hand  amid  the  laws  of  nature  for 
some  wise  and  good  purpose.  There  are  thousands 
of  well-attested  facts  constantly  occurring  around 
us,  which  every  one  knows  can  not  at  all  be  ex- 
plained in  accordance  with  the  ordinary  operation 
of  the  laws  of  nature,  and  these  too  are  miracles. 
It  is  utterly  illogical,  therefore,  to  assume  with 
Straus.s  that  miracles  are  impossible,  and  especially 
is  it  absurd  in  the  light  of  the  demonstration,  that, 
whatever  view  may  be  taken  of  the  four  Gospels, 
Jesus  Himself  is  incontestably  the  most  sublime 
and  wonderful  of  all  miracles ;  and  Jesus  Himself 
appealed  to  miracles  in  the  trustworthy  Gospel  of 
Matthew,  as  the  attestation  of  His  divinity :  "  The 
blind  receive  their  sight,  and  the  lame  walk,  the 
lepers  are  cleansed,  and  the  deaf  hear,  the  dead 
are  raised  u}),  and  [above  all,  and  more  important 
than  all]  the  poor  have  the  gospel  preached  to 
them,"  (Matt.  xi.  5). 

Prophecy,  also,  in  its  narrow  signification  of  pre- 
dicting future  events,  was  a  natural  and  necessary 
endowment  of  such  a  character.  Again  it  may  be 
affirmed  that,  whatever  view  is  taken  of  the  authen- 
ticity of  the  four  Gospels,  they  contain  prophecies 
ascribed  to  Jesus,  which  are  meeting  with  a  precise 


98  IS  THE  BIBLE  TRUE  1 

fulfillment  before  our  own  eyes.  Let  the  two  fol- 
lowing answer  as  illustrations  and  proofs  of  the 
statement;  First,  He  predicted  the  varying  suc- 
cess of  His  cause,  amid  incessant  opposition, 
through  the  centuries,  never  once  intimating  that 
it  would  achieve  universal  triumph  before  His 
second  personal  coming.  On  the  other  hand,  only 
one-fourth  part  of  the  seed,  which  is  the  word  of 
God,  will  take  permanent  effect,  and  even  that  with 
different  degrees  of  fruitfulness,  the  tares  and  the 
wheat  will  grow  together  until  the  harvest  at  the 
end  of  the  age ;  the  mustard  seed,  although  increas- 
ing until  it  becomes  the  greatest  of  trees,  furnishes 
a  convenient  shelter  for  the  birds,  which  He  repre- 
sents as  types  of  the  Wicked  one ;  and  the  leaven 
the  woman  hides  in  three  measures  of  meal,  as  the 
symbol  of  the  mj  stery  of  iniquity  already  at  work, 
will  continue  to  spread  until  the  state  of  society  in 
Christendom  will  be  like  the  moral  condition  of  the 
world  in  the  days  of  Noah,  before  the  deluge  rolled 
over  its  guilty  population;  like  the  utter  ungodli- 
ness that  prevailed  in  the  days  of  Lot,  before  a 
fiery  storm  devastated  the  proud  cities  of  the  i)lain. 
He  nowhere  promises  His  disciples  or  their  succes- 
sors exemption  from  toil  and  suffering,  but  plainly 
warns  them  that  they  are  to  expect  contempt  and 
hatred  and  persecution,  that  His  followers  will 
constitute  but  a  "  little  flock,"  and  that  His  Church 
will  be  like  the  vessel  driven  by  contrary  winds, 
and  tossed  upon  the  bosom  of  the  tempest,  when 
He  came  walking  on  the  rolling  billows.  Did  ever 
the  founder  of  any  other  religion  stimulate  his 


THE   CHARACTER  OF  JESUS.  97 

adherents  to  fidelity  by  such  a  picture  and  prospect 
as  this  !  Well  may  we  exclaim  with  David,  "  And  is 
this  the  manner  of  man,  O  Lord  God  f  (2  Sam.vii.l9). 
Second,  when  the  disciples  called  the  attention 
of  Jesus  to  the  goodly  stones  of  the  temple,  He 
announced  its  speedy  overthrow,  and  the  desola- 
tion by  armies  of  the  city  in  which  it  stood,  and 
then  added,  "They  shall  fall  by  the  edge  of  the 
sword,  and  shall  be  led  away  captive  into  all 
nations;  and  Jerusalem  shall  be  trodden  down  of 
the  Gentiles,  until  the  times  of  the  Gentiles  be 
fulfilled,"  (Luke  xxi.  24).  It  is  well  known  that 
Julian  the  Apostate  determined  to  rebuild  the 
temple,  and  thus,  by  defeating  the  prophecy,  to 
shatter  at  one  blow  the  colossal  claims  of  Jesus  to 
divinity.  He  commanded  the  Jews  from  all  parts 
of  the  widely-extended  Eoman  emj^ire  to  accomp- 
lish the  most  agreeable  task,  and,  as  Gibbon  says, 
*'  Every  purse  was  opened  in  liberal  contributions, 
every  hand  claimed  a  share  in  the  pious  labor; 
and  the  commands  of  a  great  monarch  were  exe- 
cuted by  the  enthusiasm  of  a  whole  people.  Yet/' 
he  adds,  "on  this  occasion^  the  joint  efforts  of 
power  and  enthusiasm  were  unsuccessful ;  and  the 
ground  of  the  Jewish  temple,  which  is  now  covered 
by  a  Mohametan  mosque,  still  continued  to  exhibit 
the  same  edifying  spectacle  of  ruin  and  desolation. 
.  .  .  But  the  Christians  entertained  a  natural 
and  pious  expectation,  that,  in  this  memorable 
contest,  the  honor  of  religion  would  be  vindicated 
by  some  signal  miracle.  An  earthquake,  a  whirl- 
wind, and  a  fiery  eruption,  which  overturned  and 
6 


98  IS   THE  BIBLE    THUE  ! 

scattered  the  new  foundations  of  the  temple,  are 
attested,  with  some  variations  by  contemporary 
and  respectable  evidence."  Then,  after  referring 
to  Ambrose,  bishop  of  Milan,  the  eloquent  Chrysos- 
tom,  and  Gregory  Nazianzen  as  witnesses,  he  says, 
'*  The  last  of  these  writers  has  boldly  declared, 
that  this  preternatural  event  was  not  disputed  by 
the  infidels;  and  his  assertion,  strange  as  it 
may  seem,  is  confirmed  by  the  unexceptionable 
testimony  of  Ammianus  Marcellinus,"  as  follows  : 
" '  Whilst  Alypius,  assisted  by  the  governor  of  the 
province,  urged,  with  vigor  aud  diligence,  the  exe- 
cution of  the  work,  horrible  balls  of  fire  breaking 
out  near  the  foundations,  with  frequent  and  reiter- 
ated attacks,  rendered  the  pla^e,  from  time  to  time, 
inaccessible  to  the  scorched  and  blasted  workmen; 
and  the  victorious  element  continuing  in  this  man- 
ner obstinately  and  resolutely  bent,  as  it  were,  to 
drive  them  to  a  distance,  the  undertaking  was 
abandoned.'  Such  authority  should  satisfy  a  be- 
lieving, and  must  astonish  an  incredulous,  mind," 
(Decline  and  Fall  of  the  Eoman  Empire,  Vol.  II. 
pp.  438,  439).  However  science  or  skepticism  may 
choose  to  account  for  it,  the  fact  is,  the  temple  has 
never  been  rebuilt. 

It  is  well  known,  too,  that  during  the  Crusades, 
Europe  was  rallied,  as  a  continent  has  never  been 
roused  before  nor  since,  by  the  battle  shout, 
^'  Kescue  the  holy  sepulchre  from  the  grasp  of  the 
Moslem."  Army  after  army  of  enthusiastic  sol- 
diers, animated  by  the  hope  of  winning  heaven, 
and  led  by  the  bravest  and  most  skillful  princes 


THE   CHARACTER   OF  JESUS.  99 

and  generals,  poured  into  Palestine,  only  to  be 
baffled  by  successive  disasters  and  defeats.  Even 
for  the  little  time  they  succeeded  in  planting  the 
banner  of  the  cross  upon  the  walls  of  the  sacred 
city,  Jerusalem  was  still  trodden  down  of  the  Gen- 
tiles, for  the  European  invaders  were  no  less 
Gentiles  than  the  followers  of  Mohamet.  It  is 
still  trodden  down  of  the  Gentiles,  so  that  the 
miracle  of  Christ's  prophecies,  or  of  the  i)rophecies 
recorded  in  the  Gospels,  concerning  the  condition 
of  the  Church  and  of  Jerusalem  through  subse- 
quent centuries,  is  enacted  at  this  day  before  the 
face  of  the  whole  world. 

But  why  speak  of  the  miracles  of  His  deeds  and 
I)rophecies,  when  His  mightiest  miracle  is  the  reign 
of  His  love  over  those  who  believe  in  His  name  ? 
It  is  the  glory  of  the  Gospel  that  it  reveals  to 
us  not  merely  deliverance,  but  a  Deliverer;  not 
redemption  only,  but  a  Redeemer;  and  there  is  a 
vast  difference  between  submitting  to  ecclesiastical 
rules,  or  even  accepting  a  system  of  theological 
doctrines,  and  casting  ourselves  upon  a  beating 
heart.  Millions,  during  these  eighteen  hundred 
years,  have  trusted  in  Jesus  as  a  living  Person, 
and  have  learned  in  a  happy  experience  that  His 
sweet  promise  of  rest  was  not  uttered  in  vain. 
The  conscience,  turned  into  a  blood-hound  in  the 
breast,  and  pursuing  the  wretched  fugitive  fleeing 
in  vain  from  the  memory  of  the  past,  has  found 
protection  and  peace  in  His  presence ;  the  form, 
quivering  with  grief  beside  the  grave  that  had 
swallowed  up  its  treasures,  has  felt  the  soothing 


100  IS    THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

toiicli  of  His  comforting  band ;  the  mind  groping 
in  the  gloom  of  a  cheerless  skepticism  has  been 
raised  by  His  tender  call  to  soar  amid  scenes  of 
supernal  light  and  beauty ;  and  the  soul  has  left 
behind  it  the  broken  fetters  of  sin,  that  it  may  go 
forth  upon  a  career  of  joyful  and  ennobling  con- 
secration to  Him  who  is  still  saying,  ^^  The  Son  of 
man  is  come  to  seek  and  to  save  that  which  was 
lost,''  (Luke  xix.  10).  Blessed  Lord,  eternity  will 
be  short  to  tell  out  what  we  owe  Thine  amazing 
grace ! 

Hark  !  He  speaks  again  :  "  I  am  the  bread  of  life : 
he  that  cometh  to  me  shall  never  hunger ;  and  he 
that  believeth  on  me  shall  never  thirst,"  (John  vi. 
35).  O  hungry  and  thirsty  ones,  will  ye  not  heed 
that  entreating  and  persuasive  voice  ?  It  is  a  hun- 
ger only  He  can  satisfy,  a  thirst  none  but  He  can 
quench.  Come  to  Him  to-night  with  all  your  doubts 
and  fears  and  questionings,  and  learn  the  meaning 
of  the  precious  invitation  that  seals  the  Canon  of 
Scripture,  "  Whosoever  will,  let  him  take  the  water 
of  life  freely,"  (Eev.  xxii.  17).  Come  to  Him  as 
One  who  has  the  heart  of  a  brother  to  sympathize, 
and  the  arm  of  a  God  mighty  to  save.  Then  can 
you  enter  into  the  gladness  of  those  who  through 
the  "  little  while "  are  waiting  and  watching  for 
Jesus,  and  who  will  so  soon  shout  the  harvest  song 
at  His  glorious  coming, 

"  Bring  forth  the  royal  diadem, 
And  crown  Him  Lord  of  all." 


IV. 

HUMAN  ESTIMATE  OF  JESUS, 

IT  did  not  fall  within  the  purpose  of  Strauss  to 
discuss  the  authenticity  of  the  epistles  found  in 
the  New  Testament,  but  he  acknowledges  the  genu- 
ineness at  least  of  those  attributed  to  Paul,  (Vol. 
I.  pp.  412-420).  So  far,  however,  as  the  present 
argument  is  concerned  it  ma^^  be  admitted  that 
neither  he,  nor  James,  nor  Peter,  nor  John,  nor 
Jude,  wrote  the  letters  severally  ascribed  to  them. 
It  may  be  further  admitted,  if  the  skeptic  so  desires, 
that  these  letters  are  not  inspired,  but  are  the  pro- 
ductions of  certain  unknown  men,  who  "  collected 
also  all  sorts  of  legendary  traditions,  and  embel- 
lished them  in  part  by  inventions  of  their  own." 
Still  no  one  is  foolish  enough  to  deny  that  they 
were  written  very  near  the  time  of  Jesus,  or  that 
they  express  the  estimate  that  was  formed  at  that 
early  day  of  His  j)erson  and  character  and  claims. 
We  open,  then,  the  Epistle  to  the  Eomans,  which 
is  placed  at  the  beginning  of  these  ancient  writings, 
and  we  are  struck  with  the  first  clause  of  the  first 
verse,  which  says,  "Paul,  a  servant  [literally  a 
slave]  of  Jesus  Christ."  In  the  preceding  book, 
called  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  that  is  so  largely 
occupied  with  the  labors  and  travels  and  sufferings 

101 


102  IS   THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

of  Paul,  it  is  obvious  at  a  glance  that  he  merited 
the  designation  of  a  willing  and  free  slave ,  for  he 
had  but  one  Master  and  one  object  in  view,  and 
that  was  Christ.  He  journeyed  everywhere,  ex- 
posed to  danger  in  every  form,  stoned,  beaten  with 
rods,  imprisoned,  shipwrecked,  ;fet  unfaltering  in 
his  devotion,  and  always  bearing  in  his  hand  a 
banner  with  this  strange  device,  "  God  forbid  that 
I  should  glory,  save  in  the  cross  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  by  whom  the  world  is  crucified  unto  me, 
and  I  unto  the  world,"  (Gal.  vi.  14).  It  is  in  perfect 
agreement,  therefore,  with  his  previous  history  to 
speak  of  himself  as  the  slave  of  Jesus  Christ. 

In  the  second  statement  of  the  Epistle  he  an- 
nounces that  the  gospel  of  God  is  ^'  concerning  his 
Son  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord,  which  was  made  of  the 
seed  of  David  according  to  the  tlesh ;  and  declared 
to  be  the  Son  of  God  with  power,  according  to  the 
Spirit  of  holiness,  by  the  resurrection  from  the 
dead :  by  whom  we  have  received  grace  and  apos- 
tleship,  for  obedience  to  the  faith  among  all  nations, 
for  his  name :  among  whom  are  ye  also  the  called 
of  Jesus  Christ :  to  all  that  be  in  Eome,  beloved  of 
God,  called  to  be  saints  :  Grace  to  you,  and  peace 
from  God  our  Father,  and  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 
First,  I  thank  my  God  through  Jesus  Christ  for 
you  all,  that  your  faith  is  spoken  of  throughout 
the  whole  world,  .  .  .  For  I  am  not  ashamed 
of  the  gospel  of  Christ :  for  it  is  the  power  of  God 
unto  salvation,  to  every  one  that  believeth  ;  to  the 
Jew  first,  and  also  to  the  Greek."  Whatever  may 
be  thought  of  such  language  by  the  infidel,  ;'. 


HUMAN  ESTIMATE   OF   JESUS.  103 

surely  amazing  as  exhibiting  the  estimate  put  upon 
the  character  of  Jesus.  The  gospel  is  said  to  be 
concerning  Him ;  He  is  called  our  Lord,  and  the 
Son  of  God;  all  Christians  are  chosen  by  Him; 
He  is  addressed  in  terms  of  equality  with  God  the 
Father  as  the  object  of  worship,  and  the  source  of 
grace  and  peace  ;  thanks  are  offered  through  Him  ; 
and  His  gospel  is  the  channel  for  the  communica- 
tion of  God's  power  unto  salvation,  (i.  1-8;  16). 

In  the  next  chapter  Paul  alludes  to  "the  day 
when  God  shall  judge  the  secrets  of  men,  by  Jesus 
Christ,  according  to  my  gospel,"  ii.  16).  In  the 
next  chapter,  after  bringing  in  all  the  world,  includ- 
ing both  Jew  and  Gentile,  guilty  before  God,  he  tells 
us  of  "  the  righteousness  of  God,  which  is  by  faith 
of  Jesus  Christ,  unto  all  and  upon  all  them  that 
believe ;  for""  there  is  no  difference  :  for  all  have 
sinned,  and  come  short  of  the  glory  of  God ;  being 
justified  freely  by  his  grace,  through  the  redemp- 
tion that  i§  in  Christ  Jesus :  whom  God  hath  set 
forth  to  be  a  propitiation  through  faith  in  his  blood, 
to  declare  his  righteousness  for  the  remission  of 
sins  that  are  past,  through  the  forbearance  of  God; 
to  declare,  I  say,  at  this  time,  his  righteousness : 
that  he  might  be  just,  and  the  justifier  of  him 
which  believeth  in  Jesus,"  (iii.  22-26). 

In  the  next  chapter  he  refers  to  the  faith  that 
was  imputed  to  Abraham  for  righteousness,  and 
then  adds,  "  Now  it  was  not  written  for  his  sake 
alone,  that  it  was  imputed  to  him  :  but  for  us  also, 
to  whom  it  shall  be  imputed,  if  we  believe  on  him 
that  raised  up  Jesus  our  Lord  from  the  dead ;  who 


104  IS  THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

was  delivered  for  our  offences,  and  was  raised 
again  for  our  justification/^  (iv.  23-25).  In  the 
next  chaxiter  he  says,  "Therefore  being  justified 
by  faith,  we  have  peace  with  God  through  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ;  .  .  .  for  when  we  were  yet 
without  strength,  in  due  time  Christ  died  for  the 
ungodly;  .  .  .  while  we  were  yet  sinners, 
Christ  died  for  us ;  ...  if  when  we  were  ene- 
mies, we  were  reconciled  to  God  by  the  death  of 
his  Son,  much  more,  being  reconciled,  we  shall  be 
saved  by  his  life.  And  not  only  so,  but  we  also 
joy  in  God,  through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  by 
whom  we  have  now  received  the  atonement,  [or 
reconciliation] ;  .  .  .  that  as  sin  hath  reigned 
unto  death,  even  so  might  grace  reign,  through 
righteousness,  unto  eternal  life,  by  ^esus  Christ 
our  Lord,''  (v.  1,  6,  8,  10,  11,  21). 

In  the  next  chaj^ter  he  says,  "  Know  ye  not,  that 
so  many  of  us  as  were  baptized  into  Jesus  Christ 
were  baptized  into  his  death?  ...  Knowing 
that  Christ,  being  raised  from  the  dead,  dieth  no 
more ;  .  .  .  likewise  reckon  ye  also  yourselves 
to  be  dead  indeed  unto  sin,  but  alive  unto  God 
through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord ;  .  ".  .  for  the 
wages  of  sin  is  death  ;  but  the  gift  of  God  is  eternal 
life,  through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord,"  (vi.  3,  9,  11, 
23).  In  the  next  chapter  he  says,  "  Wherefore,  my 
brethren,  ye  also  are  become  dead  to  the  law  by 
the  body  of  Christ;"  and  after  describing  the 
Avrithings  of  a  soul  in  the  grasp  of  the  law,  and  its 
fruitless  efforts  to  attain  unto  holiness  by  strug- 
gling, he  exclaims,  "  I  thauk  God,  through  Jesus 


HUMAN  ESTIMATE   OF  JESUS.  105 

Christ  our  Lord,"  (vii.  4,  25).  In  the  next  chapter 
he  says,  "  There  is,  therefore,  now  no  condemna- 
tion to  them  which  are  in  Christ  Jesus ;  for  the  law 
of  the  Spirit  of  life  in  Christ  Jesus  hath  made  me 
free  from  the  law  of  sin  and  death ;  ...  it  is 
Christ  that  died,  yea  rather,  that  is  risen  again, 
who  is  even  at  the  right  hand  of  God,  who  also 
maketh  intercession  for  us  j  who  shall  separate  us 
from  the  love  of  Christ  f '  (viii.  1,  2, 34, 35).  In  the 
next  chapter  he  describes  the  Israelites,  as  those 
"  to  whom  pertaineth  the  adoption,  and  the  glory, 
and  the  covenants,  and  the  giving  of  the  law,  and 
the  service  of  God,  and  the  i^romises ;  whose  are 
the  fathers,  and  of  whom,  as  concerniug  the  flesh, 
Christ  came,  who  is  over  all,  God  blessed  forever. 
Amen,"  (ix.  4,  5).  In  the  next  chapter  he  says, 
"  Christ  is  the  end  of  the  law  for  righteousness  to 
every  one  that  belie veth;  ...  if  thou  shalt 
confess  with  thy  mouth  the  Lord  Jesus,  and  shalt 
believe  in  thine  heart  that  God.  hath  raised  him 
from  the  dead,  thou  shalt  be  saved,"  x.  4,  9).  In 
the  next  chapter  he  says,  "  There  shall  come  out 
of  Sion  the  Deliverer,  and  shall  turn  away  ungod- 
liness from  Jacob,"  (xi.  26).  In  the  next  chapter 
he  says,  "  We,  being  many,  are  one  body  in  Christ, 
and  every  one  members  one  of  another,"  (xii.  5). 
In  the  next  chapter  he  says,  ^'  Put  ye  on  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  and  make  not  provision  for  the  flesh, 
to  fulfil  the  lusts  thereof,"  (xiii.  14).  In  the  next 
chapter  he  says,  "  To  this  end  Christ  both  died, 
and  rose,  and  revived,  that  he  might  be  Lord  both 
of  the  dead  and  the  living;     .     .     .     for  we  shall 


106  IS    THE   BIBLE   TRUE! 

all  stand  before  the  judgment  seat  of  Christ," (xiv. 
9,  10).  In  the  next  chapter  he  mentions  the  name 
of  Christ  in  twelve  verses,  closing  with  the  en- 
treaty, ^'  Kow  I  beseech  you  brethren,  for  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ's  sake,  and  for  the  love  of  the  Spirit, 
that  ye  strive  together  with  me  in  your  prayers  to 
God  for  me,"  (xv.  3,  5,  6,  7,  8,  16,  17,  18,  19,  20,  29, 
30).  In  the  last  chapter  he  mentions  Christ  in 
seventeen  verses,  concluding  with  the  doxology, 
"  To  God  only  wise,  be  glory,  through  Jesus  Christ, 
for  ever.     Amen,"  (xvi.  27). 

Now,  let  it  be  borne  in  mind,  that  if  all  this  is 
the  mistaken  opinion  of  a  deluded  fanatic  or 
enthusiast,  nevertheless  it  is  a  human  estimate  of 
Jesus,  and  such  an  estimate  as  was  never  placed 
upon  any  other  man.  From  first  to  last  lie  is  set 
forth  as  one  with  God,  as  so  exalted  in  His  nature 
and  rank  it  is  proper  to  address  to  Him  our  suppli- 
cations, as  over  all,  God  blessed  forever,  as  secur- 
ing by  His  death  the  salvation  of  the  soul,  as  the 
only  medium  through  which  eternal  life  is  con- 
veyed, as  the  object  of  faith,  as  the  Deliverer  from 
sin,  as  the  Head  of  a  new  creation  coming  in  after 
the  ruin  of  the  old  creation  under  Adam,  as  the 
Judge  at  whose  bar  the  countless  millions  of  the 
human  race  must  stand  to  hear  the  decision  that 
will  fix  their  eternal  state.  Truly  this  is  wonderful, 
and  it  is  the  more  wonderful,  because  it  is  in  such 
marked  contrast  with  the  manner  in  which  the 
writer  uniformly  describes  human  nature,  as  enmity 
against  God,  as  having  in  it  no  good  thing ;  because 
he  exhibits  no  disi)Osition  for  hero-worship  when 


HUMAN  ESTIMATE  OF  JESUS.  107 

he  speaks  of  the  most  distinguished  men,  as  Abra- 
ham and  David ;  and  because  it  is  the  testimony  of 
one  who  confesses  that  he  had  formerly  been  a 
bitter  enemy  of  the  crucified  Nazarene.  In  his 
defence  before  King  Agrippa,  he  says,  "  I  verily 
thought  with  myself,  that  I  ought  to  do  many 
things  contrary  to  the  name  of  Jesus  of  Kazareth,'^ 
(Acts  xxvi.  9) ;  but  here  he  wears  the  title  of  Jesus' 
slave,  as  the  badge  of  highest  honor,  and  the  gar- 
land of  immortality. 

The  same  intense  devotion,  the  same  lofty  ascrip- 
tion of  divine  attributes,  titles,  perfections,  works 
and  worship  to  Jesus,  the  same  constant  allusion 
to  Him,  as  if  the  soul  thrillea  with  gladness  at  the 
mention  of  His  name,  pervade  all  the  Epistles  of 
Paul.  There  is  not  time  for  an  extended  proof  of 
this,  which  it  is  needless  to  present  to  those  who 
have  the  least  familiarity  with  his  writings ;  but  a 
glance  at  the  opening  chapter  of  the  First  Epistle 
to  the  Corinthians,  immediately  following  that  to 
the  Eomans,  will  furnish  an  illustration  of  all  the 
rest:  "  Paul,  called  to  be  an  apostle  of  Jesus  Christ 
through  the  will  of  God,  and  Sosthenes  our  brother, 
unto  the  church  of  God  which  is  at  Corinth,  to 
them  that  are  sanctified  in  Christ  Jesus,  called  to 
be  saints,  with  all  that  in  every  place  call  upon  the 
name  of  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord,  both  theirs  and 
ours :  Grace  be  unto  you,  and  peace,  from  God  our 
Father,  and  from  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  I  thank 
my  God  always  on  your  behalf,  for  the  grace  of 
God  which  is  given  you  by  Jesus  Christ ;  that  in 
everything  ye  are  enriched  by  him,  in  all  utterance, 


108  IS   THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

and  in  all  knowledge;  even  as  the  testimony  of 
Christ  was  confirmed  in  you :  so  that  ye  come 
behind  in  no  gift ;  waiting  for  the  coming  of  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ:  who  shall  also  confirm  you 
unto  the  end,  that  ye  may  be  blameless  in  the  day 
of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  God  is  faithful,  by 
whom  ye  were  called  unto  the  fellowship  of  his 
Son  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord.  .  .  .  The  Jews 
require  a  sign,  and  the  Greeks  seek  after  wisdom  : 
but  we  i)reach  Christ  crucified,  unto  the  Jews  a 
stumbling  block,  and  unto  the  Greeks  foolishness ; 
but  unto  them  which  are  called,  both  Jews  and 
Greeks,  Christ,  the  power  of  God,  and  the  wisdom 
of  God.  ...  Of  him  are  ye  in  Christ  Jesus, 
who  of  God  is  made  unto  us  wisdom,  and  righteous- 
ness, and  sanctification,  and  redemiition,"  (1  Cor. 
i.  1-9,  22-24,  30). 

So  in  the  opening  chapter  of  the  Epistle  to  the 
Hebrews,  there  are  seven  assertions  concerning 
Jesus,  which  show  the  estimate  placed  upon  Him 
by  His  Apostles,  or  at  least  by  the  early  Christians. 
First,  it  is  declared  that  He  made  the  worlds,  that 
He  is  the  brightness  of  God's  glory,  or  rather,  the 
effulgence,  the  outshining  of  His  glory,  sustaining 
to  the  Father  the  relation  of  a  sunbeam  to  the  sun, 
and  that  He  is  the  express  image  of  God's  person, 
or  rather,  the  exact  expression  of  His  substance. 
Second,  it  is  announced  that  He  upholds  all  things 
by  the  word  of  His  power,  that  by  Himself  He 
purged  our  sins,  and  sat  down  on  the  right  hand  of 
the  Majesty  on  high.  Third,  at  His  resurrection 
God  is  represented  as  saying,  "  Thou  art  my  Son, 


HUMAN  ESTIMATE   OP  JESUS.  109 

this  day  have  I  begotten  thee."  Fourth,  He  is 
next  viewed  in  His  personal  relationship  to  God 
who  says,  "  I  will  be  to  him  a  Father,  and  he  shall 
be  to  me  a  Son."  Fifth,  this  is  followed  by  a  refer- 
ence to  His  second  coming,  when  an  imperial  decree 
shall  go  forth  from  heaven's  throne,  "  Let  all  the 
angels  of  God  worship  him."  Sixth,  a  glimpse  of 
His  millennial  reign  succeeds,  when  the  Father 
says  to  the  Son,  ''  Thy  throne,  O  God,  is  forever 
and  ever :  a  sceptre  of  righteousness  is  the  sceptre 
of  thy  Kingdom."  Seventh,  His  glory  through 
eternal  ages  is  proclaimed,  "  Thou,  Lord,  in  the 
begiuning  hast  laid  the  foundation  of  the  earth ; 
and  the  heavens  are  the  works  of  thine  hands : 
they  shall  perish,  but  thou  remainest :  and  they  all 
shall  wax  old  as  doth  a  garment ;  and  as  a  vesture 
shalt  thou  fold  them  up,  and  they  shall  be  changed : 
but  thou  art  the  same,  and  thy  years  shall  not 
fail,"  (Heb.  i.  1-12). 

Was  there  ever  so  high  an  estimate  as  this  placed 
upon  any  other  being,  human  or  angelic  ?  But  thus 
it  is,  through  the  whole  of  Paul's  writings  that  may 
be  easily  read  in  two  or  three  hours  ;  and  yet  in 
these  brief  writings  he  speaks  of  his  Master  233 
times  under  the  title  of  *'  Jesus,"  416  times  under 
the  title  of  "  the  Christ "  or  Messiah,  and  nearly 
300  times  under  the  title  of  "  Lord,"  as  implying 
absolute  sovereignty,  supreme  authority,  universal 
dominion.  By  one  or  another  of  these  titles  he 
mentions  the  crucified  One  in  every  chapter  of  every 
Epistle,  with  a  single  exception,  (1  Cor.  xiii.) ;  and 
that  exception    presents    a   picture  of   Him,    so 


110  IS   THE   BIBLE   TRUE  ? 

exquisite  in  its  coloring,  and  so  lovely  in  its  linea- 
ments, the  most  careless  observer  will  recognize  the 
excellence  of  the  jDortrait,  without  the  necessity  of 
reading  the  name.  With  Paul  Jesus  is  clearly  the 
motive  and  the  end,  the  cause  and  the  effect,  the 
centre  and  the  circumference ;  giving  sanction  to 
every  exhortation,  enforcing  every  appeal,  vitalizing 
every  exhortation,  filling  every  promise  with  sweet- 
ness and  with  assurance  of  hoj^e.  So  completely 
was  his  existence  absorbed  in  Him  whom  he  had 
despised  and  hated  and  persecuted,  he  could  truth- 
fully say,  ^'to  me  to  live  is  Christ,"  (Phil.  i.  21); 
for  without  Christ,  life  would  have  lost  its  charm 
and  meaning  and  power  and  purpose.  But  this  is 
not  less  true  of  James,  and  Peter,  and  John,  and 
Jude,  the  last  of  whom  although  the  "  brother  "  of 
Jesus  on  the  maternal  side,  calls  himself  His  slave. 
They  also  in  their  short  Epistles  trace  every  bless- 
ing, every  hope,  every  truth  to  Him  whom  they 
recognize  as  their  Master,  and  mention  Him  41 
times  under  the  name  of  "  Jesus,"  43  times  under 
the  name  of  "  Lord,"  and  50  times  under  the  name 
of  *' Christ."  He  was  manifestly  "  all  in  all"  to 
those  who  wrote  the  New  Testament. 

Of  the  last  book  it  contains,  the  Revelation  of 
John,  Strauss  says,  it  is  "  the  only  writing  of  our 
New  Testament  which  perhaps  comes  from  an 
immediate  disciple  of  Jesus,"  (Vol.  II.  p.  437).  He 
admits,  therefore,  the  authenticity  of  this  last  book, 
and  yet  the  estimate  put  upon  Jesus  here  is  higher, 
if  it  were  possible,  than  in  any  preceding  book.  It 
opens  with  a  doxology  "  unto  him  that  loved  us, 


HUMAN  ESTIMATE   OF  JESUS.  Ill 

and  washed  us  from  our  sins  in  his  own  blood,  and 
hath  made  us  kings  and  x^riests  unto  God  and  his 
Father ;"  it  represents  Him  as  saying,  *'  I  am  the 
first  and  the  last :  I  am  the  living  One  who  became 
dead  5  and  behold,  I  am  living  unto  the  ages  of 
ages,  and  have  the  keys  of  death  and  of  hell,"  (Eev. 
i.  5,  6,  17,  18) ;  it  exhibits  Him  as  sending  solemn 
and  searching  messages  to  the  Church  in  its 
successive  developement  and  various  phases,  until 
in  its  last  worldly  and  apostate  form  it  shall  be 
spued  out  of  His  mouth,  (ii.,  iii.) ;  it  shows  us  the 
whole  vast  assemblage  of  saints  in  heaven,  singing 
a  new  song,  and  bowing  before  the  throne  of  Jesus 
with  the  rax^turous  and  everlasting  ascrix)tion  of 
X^raise,  "  Thou  wast  slain,  and  hast  redeemed  us  to 
God  by  thy  blood,  out  of  every  kindred,  and 
tongue,  and  peox:)le,  and  nation,"  (v.  9) ;  it  describes 
Him  as  x^residing  over  the  judgments  that  shall 
smite  the  earth  with  the  thunder-strokes  of  God's 
wrath,  when  the  true  believers  of  the  present 
dispensation  shall  have  been  caught  up  above  the 
terrible  storm,  (vi.-xviii.) ;  it  x^ictures  His  second 
appearing  with  eyes  as  a  flame  of  fire,  and  many 
crowns  on  His  head,  and  on  His  vesture  and  on  His 
thigh  a  name  written.  King  of  kings,  and  Lord 
OF  LORDS,  (xix.  12-16) ;  it  closes  with  the  prayer, 
"  The  grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  be  with  you 
all.     Amen,"  (Rev.  xxii.  21). 

Whatever  treatment,  therefore,  the  New  Testa- 
ment may  receive  at  the  hands  of  skeptical  critics, 
none  will  deny  that  it  everywhere  gives  to  Jesus 
''  a  name  which  is  above  every  name  :  that  at  the 


112  IS   THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

name  of  Jesus  every  knee  should  bow,  of  those  in 
heaven,  and  those  in  earth,  and  those  under  the 
earth  ;  and  that  every  tongue  should  confess  that 
Jesus  Christ  is  Lord,  to  the  glory  of  God  the 
Father,"  (Phil.  ii.  9-11).  In  the  four  Gospels,  the 
Acts  of  the  Apostles,  the  twenty-one  Epistles,  and 
the  Apocalypse,  He  appears  so  prominently  on 
every  page.  He  is  so  completely  the  sum  and  sub- 
stance of  all  doctrinal  teachings  and  practical 
precepts.  He  is  so  entirely  the  warp  and  the  woof 
of  the  wondrous  fabric,  that  to  tear  His  name  away, 
or  to  lower  Him  to  the  level  of  ordinary  humanity, 
would  leave  us  only  a  few  worthless  shreds,  wait- 
ing to  be  swept  into  the  gutter.  Take  away  the 
name  of  Jesus,  or  deny  that  He  was  supernatural, 
and  what  will  you  make  of  the  immense  and 
imposing  system  of  Christianity,  that  did  so  much 
even  for  the  intellect  of  Strauss  although  he  was 
doubtless  unconscious  of  it,  and  that  has  accom- 
plished so  much  directly  and  indirectly  for  the 
human  race?  You  will  then  have  a  magnificent 
edifice  without  a  foundation,  a  stream  imparting  a 
fertility  and  beauty  which  all  can  see,  and  yet  with- 
out a  source.  Will  you  account  for  the  estimate 
placed  ui)on  Jesus  by  the  writers  of  the  Kew 
Testament  on  the  theory  that  they  were  impostors  ? 
*'  The  hypothesis  of  imposture,"  says  Schaff  "  is  so 
revolting  to  moral  as  well  as  common  sense,  that 
its  mere  statement  is  its  condemnation.  It  has 
never  been  seriously  carried  out,  and  no  scholar  of 
any  decency  and  self-respect  would  now  dare  to 
profess    it    openly,"    (Person  of    Christ,   p.   136). 


HUMAN  ESTIMATE  OF  JESUS.  113 

Neither  Baiir,  Strauss,  Eeiiaii,  nor  any  other 
skeptic,  who  j)ossessed  sufficient  intelligence  to 
render  him  worthy  of  the  slightest  notice,  assumes 
that  the  men  who  left  us  this  wonderful  book  were 
wilful  deceivers  and  hypocrites ;  for  the  assertion 
would  carry  with  it  a  thorough  refutation  in  the 
light  of  the  fact,  that  they  sacrificed  home  and 
country  and  kindred  and  life  itself  for  what  they 
must  have  known  was  a  falsehood,  that  they  every- 
where threaten  falsehood  with  the  vengeance  of 
eternal  damnation,  and  that  such  a  supposition 
would  commit  the  God  of  the  universe  to  the 
approval  of  fraud  and  forgery,  as  the  chosen  means 
of  communicating  the  richest  blessings  He  has  ever 
bestowed  upon  the  world.  Do  you  say  that  they 
were  fanatics  ?  Still  the  question  remains,  why 
did  they  bow  at  the  feet  of  Jesus  as  the  only  man 
whom  they  agreed  to  exalt  above  man ;  and  how  did 
the  writings  of  a  few  ignorant  fanatics  become  so 
entrenched  in  the  citadel  of  truth  that  the  discharge 
of  the  heaviest  artillery  upon  them  has  not  pro- 
duced the  least  perceptible  eifect  in  the  judgment 
of  the  best  minds ;  and  what  is  their  charm  that, 
according  to  the  confession  of  their  enemies,  they 
turn  every  desert  in  which  they  are  really  planted 
into  an  oasis,  watered  with  springs,  and  lovely  with 
verdure  ! 

But  following  the  writers  of  the  Kew  Testament, 
it  may  be  said  that  during  the  succeeding  three 
hundred  years  there  were  literally  millions  of  men 
and  women,  who  placed  upon  Jesus  the  same  high 
estimate.  For  His  sake  they  encountered  untold 
7 


114  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE  ? 

agonies,  exile,  imprisonment,  the  expostulations 
and  tears  and  curses  of  their  friends,  the  rack,  the 
faggot,  the  headsman's  axe,  the  wild  beast ;  and 
when  death  had  done  its  worst,  the  inscriptions 
placed  over  their  bones  or  ashes  witnessed  that 
their  faith  in  a  divine  Saviour  had  sustained  them 
in  the  last  shock.  These  inscriptions  are  in  marked 
contrast  with  the  gloom  which  hung  over  the  graves 
of  the  heathen,  for  they  are  always  radiant  with 
peace  and  joy  and  hope,  as  shown  in  the  catacombs. 
"  Asleep  in  Jesus,"  "  Gone  to  be  with  Christ,'^ 
*'  Waiting  till  He  come,"  and  similar  expressions, 
indicate  that  when  they  lived  they  lived  unto  the 
Lord,  and  when  they  died  they  died  unto  the  Lord, 
so  that  death  became  to  them  but  the  portals 
through  which  they  entered  the  presence  of  Him 
they  loved  so  well,  reminding  us  of  the  sweet  words 
written  on  the  tomb  of  Dean  Alford,  "  The  inn  of  a 
traveller  on  his  way  to  the  New  Jerusalem."  The 
force  of  the  argument  is  not  weakened,  even  if  it  be 
conceded  that  the  myriads  who  endured  incon- 
ceivable sufferings  for  the  sake  of  Jesus  were  silly 
enthusiasts  ;  for  none  will  deny  that  they  held  Him 
in  such  esteem.  He  absorbed  every  other  affection, 
aroused  them  to  the  most  intense  personal  devotion, 
incited  them  to  deeds  of  unexampled  heroism,  and 
rendered  them  indifferent  to  danger.  Such  esteem 
added  to  a  purity  of  life,  which  even  Gibbon 
."acknowledges,  when  he  says,  "  the  primitive  Chris- 
tian demonstrated  his  faith  by  his  virtues,"  (Vol. 
I.  p.  544),  was  absolutely  essential  to  the  remark- 
able   spread    of    Christianity    in    the    three  first 


HUMAN  ESTIMATE   OF  JESUS.  115 

centuries;  for  nothing  but  a  cordial  belief  of  the 
testimony  borne  concerning  Jesus  by  the  Apostles 
and  Evangelists  could  have  possibly  ])ioduced  such 
stuppndous  results.  As  late  as  the  year  325  when 
the  Council  of  Kice  assembled,  by  far  the  larger 
part  of  those  who  composed  that  famous  Council 
"  had  lived,"  as  Stanley  tells  us,  "  through  the  last 
and  worst  of  the  persecutions,  and  they  uow  came 
like  a  regiment  out  of  some  frightful  siege  or  battle, 
decimated  and  mutilated  by  the  tortures  or  the 
hardships  they  had  undergone,"  (History  of  the 
Eastern  Church,  p.  186).  What  but  an  abiding 
confidence  that  He  in  whom  they  trusted  was 
•*'  over  all,  God  blessed  forever,"  could  have  kept 
them  true  to  Him  in  the  midst  of  their  sore  trials, 
when,  unlike  Mahomet,  He  had  forbidden  them  to 
use  the  sword,  when  He  had  held  out  no  hope  of 
earthly  reward,  and  no  promise  of  sensual  delight 
in  the  paradise  beyond  ? 

Passing  from  these  early  and  innumerable  wit- 
nesses to  the  estimate  placed  upon  Jesus  by  His 
followers,  reference  maybe  made  to  the  admissions 
of  His  enemies.  No*  importance  will  be  attached  in 
the  argument  to  the  confession  of  Pilate,  when  "he 
took  water,  and  washed  his  hands  before  the  multi- 
tude, saying,  I  am  innocent  of  the  blood  of  this 
just  person :  see  ye  to  it;"  nor  to  the  confession  of 
the  Eoman  Centurion  who  superintended  the  cruci- 
fixion, "Truly  this  was  the  Son  of  God,"  (Matt, 
xxvii.  24,  51) ;  for  the  skeptic  may  call  in  question 
the  truth  of  the  narrative.  But  he  will  not  ques- 
tion  the  veracity   of   his  own  friends,    and  their 


116  IS  THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

statements  are  simply  amazing  as  will  be  shown. 
Lardner  in  his  "  Collection  of  Ancient  Jewish  and 
Heathen  Testimonies  to  the  trnth  of  the  Christian 
Religion,"  filling  four  large  volumes,  quotes  about 
seventy  writers  of  the  first  six  centuries,  who  used 
their  pens  against  Christ  and  His  cause.  Of  these 
it  may  be  said  in  general  that  they  often  recognize 
the  accuracy  of  the  Kew  Testament  writings  with 
regard  to  persons,  places,  and  historical  events ; 
that  they  do  not  deny  the  authenticity  of  these 
writings,  however  earnestly  they  argue  against 
their  credibility;  that  they  frequently  at  least 
manifest  an  exalted  estimate  of  the  character  of 
Jesus;  and  that  they  usually  express  their  belief 
in  the  reality  of  His  miracles.  Porphyry,  for 
example,  in  his  Philosophy  of  Oracles  writes,  '*  It 
will  perhaps  seem  strange  to  some  which  we  are 
about  to  say.  For  the  Gods  declared  Christ  to  be 
most  pious,  and  to  be  made  immortal,  and  they 
spoke  honorably  of  Him.  AVhen  we  inquired  con- 
cerning Christ,  whether  He  be  a  God,  the  answer 
was  :  That  the  soul  is  immortal  after  the  death  of 
the  body,  knows  every  body  who  is  favored  with 
wisdom.  But  the  soul  of  that  man  is  most  eminent 
for  piety.  Him  therefore  he  declared  to  be  most 
pious,  and  his  soul,  like  the  souls  of  others,  after 
death  made  immortal,  which  the  ignorant  Chris- 
tians worship,"  (Lardner,  Vol.  III.  p.  209). 

The  emperor  Julian  himself,  the  bitterest  of  all 
opposers  of  Christianity,  "  allows  that  Jesus  was 
born  in  the  reign  of  Augustus,  at  the  time  of  the  tax- 
ing made  in  Judea  by  Cy renins  :  that  the  Christian 


HUMAN  ESTIMATE   OF   JESUS.  117 

religion  had  its  rise,  and  began  to  be  propa- 
gated in  the  times  of  the  Emperors  Tiberius  and 
Claudius.  He  bears  witness  to  the  genuineness 
and  authenticity  of  the  four  Gospels  of  Matthew, 
Mark,  Luke,  and  John,  and  the  Acts  of  the  Apos- 
tles. And  he  so  quotes  them,  as  to  intimate  that 
these  were  the  only  historical  books  received  by 
Christians  as  of  authority,  and  the  only  authentic 
memoirs  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  His  Apostles,  and  the 
doctrine  preached  by  them.  He  allows  their  early 
date,  and  even  argues  for  it.  He  also  quotes,  or 
plainly  refers  to  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  to  St. 
Paul's  Epistles  to  the  Eomans,  the  Corinthians, 
and  the  Galatians.  He  does  not  deny  the  miracles 
of  Jesus  Christ,  but  allows  Him  to  have  healed  the 
blind,  and  the  lame,  and  demoniacs,  and  walked 
upon  the  waves  of  the  sea,"  (Lardner,  Vol.  lY.  p. 
93).  It  would  be  easy  to  cite  other  heathen  writers 
of  antiquity  to  the  same  effect ;  but  the  most  that 
can  be  done  within  the  limits  of  a  single  discourse 
is  to  present  a  mere  illustration  of  the  opinions 
they  entertained. 

Neither  can  anything  more  be  done  in  noticing 
the  infidel  writers  who  swarmed  in  Great  Britain 
during  the  early  part  of  the  preceding  and  the 
seventeenth  century,  nearly  all  of  whose  books  have 
long  been  out  of  print,  while  the  Bible  still  lives  to 
bless  and  comfort  and  guide  unnumbered  millions. 
"  Who,"  says  Burke,  ''  born  within  the  last  forty 
years,  has  read  one  word  of  Collins,  and  Toland, 
and  Tindal,  and  Chubb,  and  Morgan,  and  that 
whole  race  who  called  themselves  Freethinkers? 


118  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

Who  now  reads  Bolingbroke  *?  Who  ever  read 
him  through?  Ask  the  booksellers  of  London 
what  has  become  of  all  these  lights  of  the  world," 
(Burke's  Eeflections.  Works,  Vol.  Y.  p.  172). 
Hume,  who  seems  to  have  studiously  avoided  the 
mention  of  Jesus'  name,  at  least  indirectly  admits 
the  practical  value  of  the  teachings  of  Jesus  and 
the  Apostles,  when  he  refers  to  those  who  "  sup- 
pose that  the  Deity  will  inflict  punishments  on  vice, 
and  bestow  rewards  on  virtue,  beyond  what  appear 
in  the  ordinary  course  of  nature,"  and  then  adds, 
*' Whether  this  reasoning  of  theirs  be  just  or  not, 
is  no  matter.  Its  influence  on  their  life  and  con- 
duct must  still  be  the  same :  and  tho>e  who  attempt 
to  disabuse  them  of  such  prejudices,  may,  for  aught 
I  know,  be  good  reasoners,  but  I  cannot  allow  them 
to  be  good  citizens  and  politicians  ;  since  they  free 
men  from  one  restraint  upon  their  i)assions,  and 
make  the  infringement  of  the  law  of  society,  in  one 
respect,  more  easy  and  secure,"  (Essays,  p.  84). 

Hobbes  says  that  though  the  laws  of  nature  are 
not  laws  as  they  proceed  from  nature,  yet  "  as  they 
are  given  by  God  in  holy  scripture,  they  are 
properly  called  laws  ;  for  the  holy  scripture  is  the 
voice  of  God,  ruling  all  things  by  the  greatest 
right,"  (Leland's  Deistical  Writers,  Yol.  I.  p.  31). 
The  Earl  of  Shaftesbury  declares  that  "  he  who 
denies  a  Deity  is  daringly  presumptuous,  and  sets 
up  an  opinion  against  mankind,  and  being  of 
society;"  and  that  "nothing  can  more  highly  con- 
tribute to  the  fixing  of  right  apprehensions,  and  a 
sound  judgment,  or  sense  of  right  and  wrong,  than 


HUMAN  ESTIMATE   OF  JESUS.  119 

to  believe  a  God,  who  is  represented  such,  as  to  be 
a  true  model  or  example  of  the  most  exalted  justice, 
and  highest  goodness  and  worth,"  (Deistical 
Writers,  Vol.  I.  p.  79).  Lord  Bolingbroke  affirms 
that  "  no  system  can  be  more  simple  and  plain  than 
that  of  natural  religion  as  it  stands  in  the  Gospel ;" 
and  that  "  both  the  duties  required  to  be  practiced, 
and  the  propositions  required  to  be  believed,  are 
concisely  and  jjlainly  enough  expressed  in  the 
original  Gospel  properly  so  called,  which  Christ 
taught,  and  which  his  four  Evangelists  recorded. 
But  they  have  been  alike  corrupted  by  theology," 
(Deistical  Writers,  p.  164).  Thomas  Cbubb  says, 
*'  In  Christ  we  have  an  example  of  a  quiet  and 
peaceable  spirit;  of  a  becoming  modesty  and 
sobriety ;  just,  honest,  upright,  sincere  ;  and,  above 
all,  of  a  most  gracious  and  benevolent  temper  and 
behavior.  .  .  .  His  life  was  a  beautiful  picture 
of  human  nature  in  its  native  purity  and  simplicity, 
and  showed  at  once  what  excellent  creatures  men 
would  be,  when  under  the  influence  and  power  of 
that  Gospel  which  He  preached  unto  them."  The 
copy  of  the  Deistical  Writers  in  my  possession, 
containing  extracts  from  Chubb's  Posthumous 
Works,  has  upon  the  margin  in  ink  the  following- 
note  which  appears  to  have  been  written  in  1772 : 
''  I  have  been  informed  on  very  good  authority  that 
Chubb  at  his  death  left,  signed  with  his  name,  a 
solemn  declaration  to  this  purport :  '  I  am  extremely 
distressed  for  what  I  have  written  against  the 
Christian  religion,  and  implore  the  Divine  forgive- 
ness.    I   am  now  fully  convinced   of   the    divine 


120  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

authority  and  truth  of  Christianity,  and  in  witness 
hereof  I  solemnly  subscribe  my  name,  Thomas 
Chubb.^  The  bookseller  who  published  his  Post- 
humous Works,  when  this  declaration  was  offered 
to  him,  refused  to  print  it,  alleging  that  it  would 
ruin  the  sale  of  the  copies." 

Crossing  now  the  Channel  to  the  Continent,  we 
are  met  at  once  by  the  remarkable  and  well-known 
confession  of  Eousseau,  which  will  surely  outlive 
everything  else  he  wrote  :  "  Peruse  the  works  of 
our  philosophers,  with  all  their  pomp  of  diction, 
how  mean,  how  contemptible  are  they,  compared 
with  the  Scriptures  !  Is  it  possible  that  a  book,  at 
once  so  simple  and  so  sublime,  should  be  merely 
the  work  of  man  ?  Is  it  possible  that  the  sacred 
personage,  whose  history  it  contains,  should  be 
himself  a  mere  man  ?  Do  we  find  that  he  assumed 
the  tone  of  an  enthusiast,  or  an  ambitious  sectary? 
What  sweetness,  what  purity,  in  his  manner ! 
What  an  affecting  gracefulness  in  his  instructions  ! 
What  sublimity  in  his  maxims !  What  profound 
wisdom  in  his  discourses  !  What  presence  of  mind, 
what  subtlet}',  what  fitness  in  his  replies !  How 
great  the  command  over  his  passions !  Where  is 
the  man,  where  the  philosopher,  who  could  so  live 
and  so  die,  without  weakness,  and  without  ostenta- 
tion ?  .  .  .  Yes,  if  the  life  and  death  of  Socrates 
were  those  of  a  sage,  the  life  and  death  of  Jesus 
are  those  of  a  God.  Shall  we  suppose  the  evan- 
gelical history  a  mere  fiction  'I  Indeed,  my  friend, 
it  bears  no  marks  of  fiction.  On  the  contrary,  the 
history   of    Socrates,   which  no  one   presumes  to 


HUMAN  ESTIMATE   OF  JESUS.  121 

doubt,  is  not  so  well  attested  as  that  of  Jesus 
Christ.  Such  a  supposition,  in  fact,  only  shifts 
the  difficulty  without  obviating  it :  it  is  more  incon- 
ceivable that  a  number  of  persons  should  agree  to 
write  such  a  history,  than  that  one  should  furnish 
the  subject  of  it.  The  Jewish  authors  were  inca- 
pable of  the  diction,  and  strangers  to  the  morality 
contained  in  the  gospel.  The  marks  of  its  truth 
are  so  striking  and  inimitable,  that  the  inventor 
would  be  a  more  astonishing  character  than  the 
hero,"  (Emile  ou  de  L'Education). 

We  come  next  to  the  equally  remarkable  confes- 
sion of  ]!^apoleon  Bonaparte,  as  given  by  those  who 
were  his  companions  on  the  island  of  St.  Helena. 
Of  course  it  is  impossible  to  vouch  for  the  entire 
correctness  of  their  reports,  but  it  is  certain  that 
they  endeavored,  by  comparing  notes  and  their 
recollections  of  his  remarks,  to  put  these  remarks 
into  writing  with  as  much  accuracy  as  possible ; 
and  it  is  also  certain  that  not  one  of  them  was 
capable  of  making  the  argnment  which  is  ascribed 
to  him,  and  at  which  we  can  only  glance.  As 
Schaft'  says,  his  reported  religious  conversations 
'•  have  the  grandiloquent  and  egotistic  Napoleonic 
ring,  and  are  marked  by  that  massive  grandeur 
and  granite-like  simplicity  of  thought  and  style 
which  characterize  the  best  of  his  utterances. 
They  are,  moreover,  quite  consistent  with  the 
undeniable  fact,  that  he  expressed  himself,  both  in 
his  testament  and  on  his  death-bed,  a  believer  in 
the  Catholic  Christian  religion,  which  always 
taught   the   divinity  of  Christ   as  a  fundamental 


122  IS    THE   BIBLE   TRUE  ! 

article  of  faith."     Nothing  more  than  the  merest 
abstract  of  his  statements  can  be  presented  now. 

General  Bertrand  having  expressed  on  one  occa- 
sion his  admiration  of  Jesns  as  a  man,  but  his 
nn])elief  as  to  any  higher  nature,  Na]>oleon  rejdied, 
"  I  know  men,  and  I  tell  you  that  Jesus  Olirist  is 
not  a  man.  Superficial  minds  see  a  resemblance 
between  Christ  and  the  founders  of  em})ires.  Tiiat 
resemblance  does  not  exist.  There  is  between 
Christianity  and  whatever  religion  the  distance  of 
infinitj^  .  .  .  Paganism  is  the  work  of  man. 
One  can  here  read  but  our  imi>ecility.  What  do 
these  gods,  so  boastful,  know  more  than  other 
mortals?  these  legislators,  (-ireek  or  Roman?  this 
jSTuma  ?  this  Lycurgus  !  these  priests  of  India  or 
of  Memphis?  this  Confucius?  this  Mohamm3d? 
Absolutely  nothing.  They  have  made  a  perfect 
chaos  of  morals.  There  is  not  one  among  them  all 
who  has  said  anything  new  in  reference  to  our 
future  destiny,  to  the  soul,  to  the  essence  of  God, 
to  the  creation.  .  .  .  It  is  not  so  with  Christ. 
Everything  in  him  astonishes  me.  His  spirit  over- 
awes me,  and  his  will  confounds  me.  Between  him 
and  whoever  else  in  the  world,  there  is  no  possible 
term  of  comparison.  He  is  truly  a  being  by  him- 
self. His  ideas,  and  his  sentiments,  the  truths 
which  he  announces,  his  manner  of  convincing,  are 
not  explained  either  by  human  organization  or  by 
the  nature  of  things.  His  birth,  and  the  history 
c»f  his  life;  the  profundity  of  his  doctrine,  which 
grapples  the  mightiest  difficulties,  and  which  is,  of 
those  difficulties,  the  most  admirable  solution  ;  his 


HUMAN  ESTIMATE   OF  JESUS.  123 

Gospel,  his  apparition,  his  empire,  his  march 
across  the  a^es  and  realms,  everything,  is  for  me  a 
prodigy,  a  mystery  insoluble,  which  plunges  me 
into  a  reverie  from  which  I  can  not  escape,  a  mys- 
tery which  is  there  before  my  eyes,  a  mystery 
which  I  can  neither  deny  nor  explain.  Here  I  see 
nothing  human. 

"  The  nearer  I  approach,  the  more  carefully 
I  examine,  everything  is  above  me,  everything 
remains  grand — of  a  grandeur  that  overpowers. 
His  religion  is  a  revelation  from  an  intelligence 
which  certainly  is  not  that  of  man.  There  is  there 
a  profound  originality,  which  has  created  a  series 
of  words  and  of  maxims  before  unknown.  Jesus 
borrowed  nothing  from  onr  sciences.  ...  I 
search  in  vain  in  history  to  find  the  similar  to 
Jesus  Christ,  or  anything  which  can  approach  the 
Gospel.  Neither  history,  nor  humanity,  nor  the 
ages,  nor  nature,  can  offer  me  anything  with  which 
I  am  able  to  compare  it  or  explain  it.  Here  every- 
thing is  extraordinary.  The  more  I  consider  the 
Gosi)el,  the  more  I  am  assured  that  there  is  nothing 
which  is  not  beyond  the  march  of  events  and  above 
the  human  mind.  Even  the  impious  themselves 
have  never  dared  to  deny  the  sublimity  of  the 
Gospel,  which  inspires  them  with  a  sort  of  com- 
pulsory veneration.  What  happiness  that  book 
produces  for  them  who  believe  it !  What  marvels 
those  admire  who  reflect  upon  it !  Book  unique, 
where  the  mind  finds  a  moral  beauty  before  un- 
known, and  an  idea  of  the  Supreme  superior  even 
to  that  which  creation  suggests !     Who  but  God 


124  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

could  produce  that  type,  that  ideal  of  perfection, 
equally  exclusive  and  original  ?     .     .     . 

"  You  speak  of  Csesar,  of  Alexander,  of  their 
conquests,  and  of  the  enthusiasm  they  enkindled 
in  the  hearts  of  their  soldiers  5  but  can  you  con- 
ceive of  a  dead  man  making  conquests  with  an 
army  faithful  and  entirely  devoted  to  his  memory  ? 
My  armies  have  forgotten  me,  even  while  living, 
as  the  Carthagenian  army  forgot  Hannibal.  Such 
is  our  power  !  A  siugle  battle  lost  crushes  us,  and 
adversity  scatters  our  friends.  Can  you  conceive  of 
Caesar,  the  eternal  emperor  of  the  Eoman  senate, 
and  from  the  depths  of  his  mausoleum  govern- 
ing the  empire,  watching  over  the  destinies  of 
Eome  ?  .  .  .  Truth  should  embrace  the  universe. 
Such  is  Christianity,  the  only  religion  which 
destroys  sectional  prejudice,  the  only  one  which 
proclaims  the  unity  and  absolute  brotherhood  of 
the  whole  human  family,  the  only  one  which  is 
purely  spiritual — in  line,  the  only  one  which 
assigns  to  all,  without  distinction,  for  a  true 
country  the  bosom  of  the  Creator,  God.  Christ 
proved  that  he  was  the  son  of  the  Eternal  by  his 
disregard  of  time.  All  his  doctrines  signify  one 
only  and  the  same  thing — Eternity.  It  is  true  that 
Christ  proposed  to  our  faith  a  series  of  mysteries. 
He  commands  with  authority  that  we  should 
believe  them,  giving  no  other  reason  than  those 
tremendous  words,  ^lam  Ood.''  He  declares  it. 
What  an  abyss  he  created  by  that  declaration 
between  himself  and  all  the  fabricators  of  religion! 
What  audacity,  what  sacrilege,  what  blasphemy, 


HUMAN  ESTIMATE  OF  JESUS.  125 

if  it  were  not  true !  I  say  more ;  the  universal 
triumph  of  an  affirmation  of  that  kind,  if  the 
triumph  was  not  really  that  of  God  himself,  would 
be  a  plausible  excuse  and  a  reason  for  atheism." 
.  .  .  For  a  moment  the  Emperor  was  silent. 
As  General  Bertrand  made  no  reply,  he  solemnly 
added,  "  If  you  do  not  perceive  that  Jesus  Christ 
is  God,  very  well,  then  I  did  wrong  to  make  you  a 
general,"  (Life  of  Napoleon,  Vol.  II.,  pp.  612-618.) 

The  next  witness  to  be  summoned  is  Strauss 
himself,  who  will  probably  be  claimed  by  his  ad- 
mirers as  a  kind  of  intellectual  Napoleon,  perform- 
ing as  many  wonders  in  the  field  of  dialectics  as 
the  French  Emperor  accomplished  on  the  field  of 
battle.  In  an  earlier  essay  quoted  by  Schaif,  he 
says,  "  As  little  as  humanity  will  ever  be  without" 
religion,  as  little  will  it  be  without  Christ ;  for  to 
have  religion  without  Christ  would  be  as  absurd 
as  to  enjoy  poetry  without  regard  to  Homer  or 
Shakspeare.  And  this  Christ,  as  far  as  he  is 
inseparable  from  the  highest  style  of  religion,  is 
histoiicaly  not  mythical ;  is  an  individual,  no  mere 
symbol.  To  the  historical  i)erson  of  Christ  belongs 
all  in  his  life  that  exhibits  his  religious  perfection, 
his  discourses,  his  moral  action,  and  his  passion. 
.  .  .  He  remains  the  highest  model  of  religion 
within  the  reach  of  our  thought;  and  no  perfect 
XDiety  is  possible  without  his  presence  in  the  heart." 

Even  in  his  larger  and  later  work  he  says,  "  The 
Boman  conceived  of  man  as  he  ought  to  be  differ- 
ently from  the  Greek,  the  Jew  differently  from 
both,  the  Greek,  after  Socrates,  differently  from, 


126  IS    THE   BIBLE   TRUE? 

and  unquestionably  more  perfectly  than  before. 
Every  man  of  moral  pre-eminence,  every  great 
thinker  who  has  made  the  active  nature  of  man 
the  object  of  his  investigation,  has  contributed  in 
narrow  or  wider  circles  towards  correcting  that 
idea,  perfecting  or  improving  it.  And  among  these 
improvers  of  the  ideal  of  humanity  Jesus  stands, 
at  all  events,  in  the  tirst  class.  He  introduced 
features  into  it  which  were  wanting  to  it  before,  or 
had  continued  undeveloped;  reduced  the  dimen- 
sions of  others  which  prevented  its  universal 
application;  imparted  into  it,  by  the  religious 
aspect  which  he  gave  it,  a  more  lofty  consecration, 
and  bestowed  upon  it,  by  embodying  it  in  his  own 
person,  the  most  vital  warmth ;  while  the  Religious 
'Society  which  took  its  rise  from  him  provided  for 
this  ideal  the  widest  acceptance  among  mankind," 
(Vol.  II.  pp.  436-437). 

Appropriately  following  Strauss,  Reiian  may  be 
called  to  the  stand  to  express  his  estimate  of  Jesus. 
In  opposition  to  his  German  friend,  he  accepts  as 
especially  authentic  and  trustworthy  the  Gospel 
of  John;  and  referring  to  the  interview,  there 
recorded,  between  Jesus  and  the  woman  at  Sychar's 
well,  when  our  Lord  said  to  her,  "  The  hour  com- 
eth,  and  now  is,  when  the  true  worshippers  shall 
worship  the  Father  in  spirit  and  in  truth,  for  the 
Father  seeketh  such  to  worship  him,"  the  French 
infidel  says,  '*  On  the  day  when  he  pronounced 
these  words,  he  was  indeed  the  son  of  God.  He 
for  the  first  time  gave  utterance  to  the  idea  upon 
which   shall   rest  the  edifice  of   the  everlasting 


HUMAN  ESTIMATE   OF  JESUS.  127 

religion.  He  founded  the  pure  worsbij),  of  no  age, 
of  no  clime,  which  shall  be  that  of  all  lofty  souls 
to  the  end  of  time.  Not  only  was  his  religion,  that 
day,  the  benign  religion  of  humanity,  but  it  was 
the  absolute  religion ;  and  if  other  planets  have 
inhabitants  endowed  with  reason  and  morality, 
their  religion  can  not  be  different  from  that  which 
Jesus  proclaimed  at  Jacob's  well.  Man  has  not 
been  able  to  abide  by  this  worship  ;  we  attain  the 
ideal  only  for  a  moment.  The  words  of  Jesus  were 
a  gleam  in  thick  night;  it  has  taken  eighteen  hun- 
dred years  for  the  eyes  of  humanity  (what  do  I 
say!  of  an  infinitely  small  portion  of  humanity)  to 
abide  it.  But  the  gleam  shall  become  the  full  day, 
and,  after  passing  through  all  the  circles  of  error, 
humanity  will  return  to  these  words,  as  to  the  im- 
mortal expression  of  its  faith  and  its  hopes,'^  (Life 
of  Jesus,  p.  215). 

Again,  alluding  to  His  death  he  says,  "  Eepose 
now  in  th^  glory,  noble  founder.  Thy  work  is 
finished,  thy  divinity  is  established.  Fear  no  more 
to  see  the  edifice  of  thy  labors  fall  by  any  fault. 
Henceforth,  beyond  the  reach  of  frailty,  thou  shalt 
witness  from  the  heights  of  divine  peace,  the  infi- 
nite results  of  thy  acts.  At  the  price  of  a  few 
hours  of  suffering,  which  did  not  even  reach  thy 
grand  soul,  thou  hast  bought  the  most  com[)lete 
immortality.  For  thousands  of  years,  the  world 
will  dei)end  on  thee !  Banner  of  our  contests,  thou 
shalt  be  the  standard  about  which  the  hottest 
battle  will  be  given.  A  thousand  times  more  alive,  a 
thousand  times  more  beloved,  since  thy  death  than 


128  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

during  th;y  passage  here  below,  tbou  slialt  become 
the  coriier-stoue  of  hiiuiauity  so  entirely,  that  to 
tear  thy  name  from  this  world  would  be  to  reud  it 
to  its  foundations.  Between  thee  and  God,  there 
will  be  no  longer  any  distinction.  Complete  con- 
queror of  death,  take  possession  of  thy  kingdom, 
whither  shall  follow  thee,  by  the  royal  road  which 
thou  hast  traced,  ages  of  worshippers,"  (Life  of 
Jesus,  p.  351).  So  he  closes  his  rhapsody  by  say- 
ing, "  Whatever  may  be  the  surprises  of  the  future, 
Jesus  will  never  be  surpassed.  His  worship  will 
grow  young  without  ceasing ;  his  legend  will  call 
forth  tears  without  end ;  his  sufferings  will  melt 
the  noblest  hearts  ;  all  ages  will  proclaim  that 
among  the  sons  of  men  there  is  none  born  greater 
than  Jesus,"  (p.  376).  But  even  this  does  not  sur- 
pass the  words  of  Jean  Paul  Eichter,  when  speak- 
ing of  that  majestic  One  who,  "  being  the  Holiest 
among  the  mighty,  and  the  Mightiest  among  the 
holy,  has  lifted  with  his  pierced  hand  empires  off 
their  hinges,  has  turned  the  stream  of  centuries 
out  of  its  channel,  and  still  governs  the  ages." 

Surely  it  is  needless  to  present  other  quotations, 
that  could  be  continued  indefinitely^  The  friends 
and  the  foes  of  the  crucified  Jesus  seem  to  vie  with 
each  other  in  their  estimate  of  His  worth,  and  in 
their  eulogies  upon  His  character.  Would  this 
have  been  possible,  if  He  were  an  impostor,  or  a 
fanatic,  or  less  than  supernatural  ?  Has  any  life 
been  so  closely  scrutinized!  Has  any  biography 
been  so  severely  criticised  ?  Would  not  a  hypo- 
crite or  a  charlatan  have  been  long  ago  exposed, 


HUMAN  ESTIMATE   OF  JESUS.  129 

and  dismissed  from  the  attention  of  thoughtful 
men  with  merited  contemi)t  ?  It  is  vain  to  reply 
by  referring  to  the  regard  with  which  the  names  of 
Mohammed,  Confucius,  and  the  authors  of  the 
Hindoo  Yedas  are  still  cherished  in  different  i^arts 
of  the  earth.  Very  often  noble  opinions  and  senti- 
ments are  attributed  to  these  men  which  they  never 
thought  of  uttering;  and  the  skeptics  who  are 
guilty  of  this  despicable  trick  in  order  to  cast  dis- 
credit on  the  Gospel,  if  they  really  have  any 
familiarity  with  their  writings,  are  careful  to  con- 
ceal from  the  common  people  the  monstrous  errors, 
and  wretched  morals,  and  childish  superstitions, 
and  grotesque  extravagances  with  which  the  hea- 
then writings  they  profess  to  admire  notoriously 
abound.  This  is  so  well  known  indeed  that  any 
serious  attempt  to  substitute  the  religion  of  Mo- 
hammed or  Confucius  or  Brahma  for  Christianity 
in  Europe  or  the  United  States  would  be  hailed 
with  a  shout  of  laughter  as  a  ludicrous  farce. 
Whatever  they  may  be  to  the  people  of  Turkey  or 
China  or  India,  they  can  never  be  anything  to 
those  who  are  blessed  with  the  brighter  light  of 
Christian  civilization.  But  is  this  true  of  Jesus 
with  respect  to  any  nation  or  race  beneath  the  sun  ? 
Is  He  not  precisely  adapted  to  all  classes  of  all 
climes?  May  not  a  Newton  and  a  child  bow 
together  at  His  feet,  the  accomplished  scholar  and 
the  untutored  savage  meet  in  sweetest  sympathy 
at  His  cross  ?  Would  infidels  themselves  exchange 
His  Gospel  for  any  other  religion?  Nay,  would 
they  be  willing  to  live,  or  to  have  their  families 
8 


130  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE  ? 

live,  in  a  laud  or  in  a  community,  where  His  Gos- 
pel is  wholly  unknown,  or  from  which  His  Gospel 
has  been  totally  banished  ?  Not  one  of  them,  who 
possesses  the  lowest  degree  of  intelligence  or  of 
resi)ect  for  morality.  A  dying  infidel  said  to  me 
not  long  ago,  "  I  do  not  wish  my  children  to  accept 
my  views  ;"  aud  i)robably  every  thoughtful  skeptic 
would  say  the  same  thing,  thus  bearing  testimony 
again  to  the  high  estimate  which  is  somehow  put 
upon  the  value  of  Jesus  even  by  those  who  do  not 
believe  on  Him  as  their  Eedeemer. 

There  is  now  in  my  study,  in  manuscript,  a  con- 
fession read  to  a  large  assembly  in  Kentucky  by  a 
man  who  had  reached  his  seventy-first  birth-day. 
He  was  a  physician  of  fine  culture,  possessing 
ample  means  and  abundant  leisure  for  the  gratifi- 
cation of  his  literary  tastes,  and  standing  among 
his  acquaintances  even  above  the  breath  of  re- 
proach or  suspicion.  For  more  than  sixty  years 
he  was  an  avowed  infidel,  and  no  argument  the 
ablest  Christians  could  bring  to  bear  upon  his 
objections  to  the  Bible  could  move  him  a  hair's 
breadth  from  his  position  of  unbelief.  His  confes- 
sion begins  as  follows  :  "  A  deist,  a  skeptic,  with 
a  character  for  integrity,  x)robity  and  benevolence 
among  men,  I  was  a  self-righteous  Pharisee. 
Trusting  in  my  own  reason,  vaunting  my  own 
ability,  proud  of  my  reputation,  believing  in  my 
own  worth  and  merits,  I  was  as  one  born  blind.  I 
was  self-deceived,  and  believed  I  was  doing  God's 
service,  when  I  denied  His  revealed  word,  and  con- 
troverted   the    truths   of    Scripture.     If   I   know 


HUMAN  ESTIMATE  OF   JESUS.  131 

myself  I  was  honest  iu  my  oppositiou  to  all  super- 
natural knowledge.  I  believed  that  God  had  re- 
vealed Himself  in  nature,  and  nowhere  else ;  but 
that  revelation  was  limited,  and,  to  my  mind,  unsat- 
isfactory. I  knew  not  what  I  was  doing.  I  was  as 
those  for  whom  Jesus  prayed  in  His  dying  agony 
on  the  cross,  '  Father,  forgive  them,  for  they  know 
not  what  they  do.'  I,  even  I,  was  included  in  that 
pray.r;  and  in  the  blessed  Saviour,  I,  even  I,  once 
His  enemy,  but  now  His  worshipper,  'have  an 
advocate  with  the  Father,'  yea,  an  almighty 
friend,  a  mediator  and  intercessor,  through  whom 
I  am  enabled  to  say,  *  Abba,  Father.'  Blessed  be 
God  for  Jesus  Christ,  the  friend  and  Saviour  of 
sinners!" 

That  man,  before  he  became  a  Christian,  talked 
with  me  by  the  hour,  and  sincerely  declared  that 
he  could  see  no  proof  of  a  divine  origin  stamped 
upon  the  Bible,  and  no  beauty  in  Jesus  that  He 
should  be  desired.  After  he  became  a  Christian  it 
was  my  privilege  to  meet  him  again,  and,  as  he 
approached,  the  tears  were  running  down  his  manly 
face,  while  he  exclaimed  with  tremulous  voice, 
"  Since  I  saw  you  last,  I  have  found  Jesus  unutter- 
ably precious  to  my  soul."  His  daughter,  whom 
he  tenderly  loved,  had  died  a  Christian,  and  in  the 
darkness  of  his  skepticism,  and  out  of  the  depth 
of  his  grief,  he  had  shrieked,  ''  Where  is  my  child  ? 
Is  she  gone  from  me  forever  ?  Shall  I  see  her  no 
more,  no  more?  Can  I  never  press  her  to  my 
bosom?"  But  like  Baal,  when  the  false  prophets 
leaped  upon  the  altar,  and  cut  themselves,  after 


132  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

their  manner,  with  knives  and  lancets,  till  the 
blood  gashed  out  upon  them,  *'  there  was  no  voice, 
nor  any  that  answered,"  (1  Kings  xviii.  26-28). 
*'  Oh,  sir,"  he  said,  "  nature,  reason,  philosophy, 
science,  were  all  dumb  as  the  silent  grave  that  held 
the  form  of  my  precious  child:  and  I  turned  to 
Jesus,  because  He  alone  met  and  satisfied  a  great, 
crying  want  of  my  aching  heart." 

Yes,  this  is  one  of  the  many  crowns  that  adorn 
the  brow  of  our  adorable  Lord ;  He  meets  our 
wants,  not  by  the  stretch  of  an  excited  imagina- 
tion reaching  out  to  fancied  help,  but  by  the  actual 
commuuications  of  His  grace,  as  ten  thousand 
times  ten  thousand  truthful  witnesses  would 
spring  to  their  feet  to  testify  to-night.  Theodore 
Parker,  another  infidel  of  the  Strauss  or  Baur 
school,  speaking  of  Jesus,  said,  "  That  mightiest 
heart  that  ever  beat,  stirred  by  the  Spirit  of  God, 
how  it  wrought  in  his  bosom !  What  words  of 
rebuke,  of  comfort,  counsel,  admonition,  promise, 
hope,  did  he  pour  out !  -Words  that  stir  the  soul 
as  summer  dews  call  up  the  faint  and  sickly 
grass."  The  time  is  coming,  and  coming  very 
soon,  dear  friends,  when  the  world  will  present  to 
you  but  the  appearance  of  faint  and  sickly  grass, 
and  you  will  thirst  for  the  gentle  dews  which  only 
Jesus  can  send.  Disappointment  in  every  earthly 
pursuit  is  coming,  the  enforced  cessation  of  busi- 
ness is  coming,  the  desertion  of  those  you  trusted 
is  coming,  the  bitterness  of  enemies  is  coming,  the 
deep  shadow  of  a  grave,  to  rest  upon  your  heart 
and  home,   is  coming,   disease  is   coming,  pain  is 


HUMAN   ESTIMATE   OF  JESUS.  133 

coming,  the  last  look  upon  the  faces  of  loved  ones 
is  coming,  the  loneliness  of  the  tomb  is  coming,  the 
vastness  of  eternity  is  coming,  the  judgment  day 
is  coming ;  and  in  every  trying  experience  you  will 
need  just  such  a  friend  as  Jesus  in  His  human 
sympathy  and  divine  sufficiency. 

"  I,  if  I  be  lifted  up  from  the  earth,  will  draw  all 
men  unto  me,"  (John  xii.  32),  is  His  own  sublime 
assertion  of  the  universality  of  His  empire ;  and 
are  you  sure  the  assertion  is  not  true?  Would  it 
not  be  better  for  you  if  drawn  "  with  cords  of  a 
man,  with  bands  of  love"  to  dwell  amid  the  pleas- 
ures that  are  at  His  right  hand  forevermore,  than 
to  be  dragged  by  the  chains  of  unappeased  justice, 
to  hear  from  the  lips,  that  now  entreat  you,  the 
sentence  of  a  righteous  condemnation,  "  Depart 
from  mel"  Do  you  believe  that  Christians  and 
intelligent  and  respectable  infidels  would  have 
agreed  so  nearly  in  their  estimate  of  His  person 
and  character,  unless  He  is  what  He  claims  to  be  ? 
But  if  He  is  what  He  claims  to  be,  and  of  this  there 
are  innumerable  witnesses,  the  hour  is  near  when 
at  the  mention  of  His  name,  heaven  shall  ring  with 
the  hallelujahs  of  the  redeemed,  and  the  shout  of 
angels,  and  even  the  confessions  of  the  lost,  that 
Jesus  Christ  is  Lord,  to  the  glory  of  God  the  Father. 
May  the  admissions  of  skeptics  which  you  have 
heard  this  evening  lead  you  to  Him  whose  word 
they  reject;  ''for  their  rock  is  not  as  our  Eock, 
even  our  enemies  themselves  being  judges !"  (Deut. 
xxxii.  31). 


V. 

TEE  BE8UBEECTI0N  OF  JESUS. 

STEAUSS,  in  approaching  the  discussion  of  this 
mighty  subject,  says,  "Here  then  we  stand 
on  that  decisive  i)oint  where,  in  the  presence  of 
the  accounts  of  the  miraculous  resurrection  of 
Jesus,  we  either  acknowledge  the  inadmissibility 
of  the  natural  and  historical  view  of  the  life  of 
Jesus,  and  must  consequently  retract  all  that  pre- 
cedes, and  so  give  up  our  whole  undertaking,  or 
pledge  ourselves  to  make  out  the  possibility  of  the 
result  of  these  accounts,  i.  6.,  the  origin  of  the 
belief  in  the  resurrection  of  Jesus  without  any 
corresponding  miraculous  fact.  The  more  immedi- 
ately this  question  touches  all  Christianity  to  the 
quick,  the  more  regard  we  must  pay  to  the  sensi- 
bility with  which  every  unprejudiced  word  that  is 
uttered  about  it  is  received,  and  even  to  the  sensi- 
ble effect  which  such  words  may  have  upon  him 
who  pronounces  them ;  but  the  more  important  the 
point  is,  and  the  more  decisive  on  the  other  side, 
for  the  whole  view  of  Christianity,  the  more  press- 
ing is  the  demand  upon  the  investigator  to  set 
aside  all  these  considerations,  and  pronounce  upon 
it  in  a  perfectly  unprejudiced,  perfectly  decided 
spirit,  without  ambiguity  and  without  reserve." 

134 


THE  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS.      135 

Then,  after  alludiug,  with  scarcely  concealed 
contemx^t,  to  the  views  of  those  infidels  who  hold 
that  the  death  of  Jesus  upon  the  cross  was  not 
real,  he  refers  to  Baur,  his  own  master  in  the 
school  of  skeptical  criticism  of  which  he  became 
the  most  distinguished  representative,  and  adds, 
"  Even  Baur  himself  has  vouchsafed  to  declare 
that  the  real  nature  of  the  Eesurrection  of  Jesus 
lies  outside  the  limits  of  historical  investigation, 
and  has  accordingly,  at  least  in  words,  avoided  the 
burning  question.  For  his  words  appear  to  mean 
that  it  can  not  be  historically  discovered,  and  that 
it  is  not  even  a  problem  for  historical  investigation 
to  find  out  whether  the  Eesurrection  of  Jesus  was 
an  objective  occurrence,  either  miraculous  or 
natural,  or  whether  it  was  only  the  belief  of  his 
disciples."  In  this  connection  he  speaks  of  "  the 
apologists  who  would  like  to  persuade  the  world 
that  if  the  reality  of  the  Eesurrection  is  not  recog- 
nized, the  origin  and  rise  of  the  Christian  Church 
can  not  be  explained,"  and  continues  :  "  No,  says 
the  historian,  and  rightly,  only  this  much  need  be 
acknowledged,  that  the  disciples  firmly  believed 
that  Jesus  had  arisen ;  this  is  perfectly  sufficient 
to  make  their  further  progress  and  operations 
intelligible  J  what  that  belief  rested  upon,  what 
there  was  real  in  the  resurrection  of  Jesus  is  an 
open  question,  which  the  investigator  may  answer 
one  way  or  another,  without  the  origin  of  Christi- 
anity being  thereby  made  more  or  less  conceiva- 
ble." As  for  himself  he  can  not  accept  the  account 
given  in  the  New  Testament  of  the  resurrection, 


136  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

"but  we  are  prevented,"  he  says,  "by  various 
reasons  from  adopting  this  view  as  our  own. 
Whether  we  consider  miracles  in  general  as  possi- 
ble or  not,  if  we  are  to  consider  a  miracle  of  so 
unheard  of  a  description  as  having  really  occurred, 
it  must  be  proved  to  us  by  evidence  in  such  a  man- 
ner, that  the  untruth  of  such  evidence  would  be 
more  difficult  to  conceive  than  the  reality  of  that 
which  it  was  intended  to  prove,"-  (Vol.  I.  pp. 
397-398). 

With  all  this  the  Christian  may  heartily  agree. 
The  literal  resurrection  of  Jesus  is  indeed  the 
decisive  point  upon  which  the  whole  of  our  faith 
turns,  upon  which  the  divine  origin  of  the  Bible 
turns,  upon  which  the  hope  of  mankind  turns,  so 
far  as  that  hope  is  shaped  by  the  life,  the  charac- 
ter, the  teachings,  the  death  of  Christ ;  and  Strauss 
well  calls  it  "the  burning  question."  We  may 
even  agree,  in  our  anxiety  to  escape  from  dispute 
where  it  is  possible  to  be  avoided,  that  the  origin 
and  rise  of  the  Christian  Church  can  be  explained 
without  the  necessity  of  recognizing  the  reality  of 
the  resurrection,  if  only  thus  much  be  acknowl- 
edg-ed,  that  the  disciples  firmly  believed  that  Jesus 
had  arisen.  It  is  still  further  agreed  that  a  miracle 
of  so  unheard  of  a  description  must  be  proved  by 
evidence  in  such  a  manner,  that  the  untruth  of 
sach  evidence  would  be  more  difficult  to  conceive 
than  the  reality  of  that  which  it  was  intended  to 
prove.  The  argument,  then,  will  rest  entirely  upon 
the  premises  which  he  lays  down,  and  it  is  to  be 
regretted  that  within  the  limits  of  a  single  public 


THE   RESURRECTION   OF   JESUS.  137 

discourse  he  can  not  be  followed  step  by  step,  and 
inch  by  inch,  along  the  track  of  his  wonderfully 
subtle  reasoning ;  for  it  is  certain  that  the  heart  of 
the  believer  would  throb  with  quicker  joy  on  the 
discovery  that,  after  the  utmost  resources  of 
human  ability  and  ingenuity  have  been  exhausted 
in  attacking  the  foundation  of  his  hope,  his  faith 
in  the  resurrection  of  Jesus  stands  firmer  than 
ever;  and  he  would  surely  accord  with  the  judg- 
ment given  by  Schaff,  that  "the  chapter  on  the 
resurrection  of  Jesus  is  the  weakest  part  of 
Strauss's  book,  where  his  mythological  hypothesis 
breaks  down  completely,"  (Person  of  Christ,  p.  165). 
It  is  important  at  the  outset  to  inform  those  who 
have  never  read  his  book  of  his  admissions  con- 
cerning Jesus,  admissions  that  constitute  the  basis 
of  his  argument  and  are  built  into  the  wbole 
structure  of  his  work ;  and  it  is  fair  to  add  that  as 
it  is  a  work  which  has  never  been  equalled  in  the 
past  by  the  enemies  of  Christianity,  so  it  will  never 
be  surpassed  in  the  future.  Infidelity  has  no 
weapon  left  that  lies  outside  the  armory  of  Strauss, 
or  that  has  not  been  used  in  his  powerful  but 
ineffectual  assault.  He  admits  that  such  a  person 
as  Jesus  lived  more  than  eighteen  hundred  years 
ago;  that  He  taught  very  remarkable  doctrines 
touching  God  and  man ;  that  He  went  about, 
accompanied  by  a  number  of  disciples,  proclaiming 
these  doctrines,  and  doing  many  kind  and  benevo- 
lent acts ;  that  in  the  course  of  His  brief  public 
career  He  announced  that  He  was  the  Messiah 
mentioned  by  the  Old  Testament  prophets,   an(J 


138  IS    THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

was  received  as   such  by  His  followers ;   that  He 
thus  incurred  the  enmity  of  the  Jewish  rulers,  and 
was  at  last  put  to  death  by  order  of  the  Eomar 
governor  of  Judea,  that  shortly  after  His   death, 
His  disciples  firmly  believed  that  He  was  risen  from 
the  dead,  and  that  He  would  come  again,  probably 
very  soon,  to  establish  His  kingdom,  and  to  reign 
over  the  earth.    Upon  this  last  point  the  admission 
of  Strauss  is  so  striking  it  must  be  quoted.     Jesus, 
he  says,   ''  speaks  in  the  Gospels   not  only  of  his 
resurrection  on  the  third  day,  but  also  of  the  com- 
ing of  the  Son  of  man,  i.  e.j  of  his   own  second 
coming  at  a  later  though  not  distant  period,  when 
he  will  appear  in  the  clouds  of  heaven,  in  divine 
glory,  and  accompanied  by  angels  to  awake  the 
dead,  to  judge  the  quick  and  the  dead,  and  to  open 
his  kingdom,  the  kingdom  of  God  or  heaven   [this 
lie  proves  by  numerous  references] .     Here  we  stand 
face  to  face  with  a  decisive  point.  .  The    ancient 
Church  clung  to  this  part  of  the  doctrine  of  Jesus 
in  its  literal   signification,   nay  it    was    properly 
speaking  built  upon  this  foundation,  since  without 
the  expectation  of  a  near  return  of  Christ  no  Chris- 
tian whatever  would  have  come   into    existence. 
For  us,  on  the  contrary,  Jesus  has  either  no  exist- 
ence at  all,  or  exists  only  as  a  human  being.     To 
a  human  being  no  such  thing  as  he  here  prophesied 
of  himself  could  happen.     If  he  did  prophecy  it  of 
himself  and  expect  it  himself,  he  is  for  us  nothing 
but  a  fanatic :  if,  without  any  conviction  on  his  own 
part  he  said  it  of  himself,  he  was  a  braggart  and  an 
impostor,"  (Vol.  I.  p.  322). 


THE  BESURRECTION  OF  JESUS.      139 

These  last  few  words  exhibit  the  fatal  weakness 
of  his  book  as  an  argument.  He  takes  it  for 
granted  that  Jesus  was  a  mere  man,  and  then  pro- 
ceeds to  explain  away  or  flatly  to  deny  everything 
that  is  inconsistent  with  his  foregone  conchision. 
He  assumes  throughout  the  very  point  to  be 
proved.  For  him,  no  matter  what  may  be  said, 
Jesus  has  either  no  existence  at  all,  that  is,  there 
is  no  immortality  even  for  the  soul,  or  He  exists 
only  as  a  human  being,  and  therefore  Strauss  would 
not  be  persuaded,  "  though  one  rose  from  thedead.'^ 
He  insists  all  the  time  without  the  slightest 
evidence  upon  forcing  One,  whom  the  writers  of 
the  New  Testament  everywhere  represent  as  a 
supernatural  being,  into  helpless  subjection  to  the 
laws  of  nature,  as  they  are  called ;  and  hence  his 
objection  to  the  statements  of  the  writers  that, 
when  Jesus  was  risen  from  the  dead.  He  suffered 
Himself  to  be  touched,  and  partook  of  ordinary 
food,  and  also  passed  through  closed  doors  into  the 
presence  of  His  disciples.  "  A  body,"  says  Strauss, 
"  which  can  be  touched,  consequently  has  power  of 
resistance,  can  not  penetrate  through  closed  doors, 
/.  e.,  can  not  have  at  the  same  time  that  power  of 
resistance  ;  as,  conversely,  a  body  which  penetrates 
through  boards  without  opposition  can  have  no 
bones,  nor  any  organ  by  which  to  digest  bread  and 
lish,"  (Vol.  I.  p.  407).  Can  not  even  a  child  of 
common  intelligence  perceive  that  this  is  a  shame- 
ful begging  of  the  question  in  claiming,  without  a 
particle  of  proof,  that  the  risen  body  of  Christ  was 
just  like  the  body  of  an  ordinary  being !    If  Jesus 


140  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE! 

was  only  a  man,  the  elaborate,  and  often  splendid 
reasoning  of  Strauss  is  indeed  unanswerable  ;  but 
if  He  was  more  than  man,  the  stately  superstructure 
of  the  skeptical  critic  tumbles  about  his  ears  in 
utter  ruins. 

That  He  was  more  than  man  has  been  already 
proved,  and  it  may  be  i^roved  again  by  the  evidence 
of  His  real  resurrection  "  in  such  a  manner,  that 
the  untruth  of  such  evidence  would  be  more  difficult 
to  conceive  than  the  reality  of  that  which  it  was 
intended  to  i)rove." 

I.  As  the  argument  is  addressed,  not  to  the 
Atheist,  but  the  Theist,  it  will  be  admitted  that  it 
is  a  possible  thing  for  God  to  raise  the  dead.  Even 
the  impersonal  God  of  the  Pantheist,  and  this  is 
what  Strauss  seems  to  have  been,  may  be  mani- 
fested in  the  body  of  a  risen  man,  however 
extraordinary  the  occurrence,  as  well  as  in  any 
other  of  His  strange  and  multitudinous  forms. 
Fichte  says,  "  The  '  I  Ms  the  only  object  in  the 
universe.  *Self'  is  the  absolute  principle  of  all 
philosophy.  ^  I  ^  am  the  creator  of  the  universe. 
*'  I '  make  it  to  realize  my  own  self-development. 
The  thinking  of  the  mind  is  the  active  existence  of 
God — so  that  man  and  God  are  identical.  I  then 
am  God."  Hegel  says,  "  God  is  a  mere  process, 
ever  unfolding,  realizing  himself  in  the  human  con- 
sciousness. God  is  the  dialectic  i^rocess  of  thought. 
In  another  aspect,  God  is  nature  coming  to  self- 
consciousness — the  absolute  idea."  But  even  if 
this  is  true,  it  will  not  be  denied  that  God  can 
realize  his  own  self-development  in  a  risen  body, 


THE  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS.      141 

and  become  identical  with  such  a  body,  and  awake 
to  self-consciousness  in  such  a  body,  as  a  higher 
exhibition  and  outreaching  of  His  infinite  suffi- 
ciency, not  less  easily  than  in  the  thousand  displays 
He  is  continually  making  of  Himself  above  the 
regular  routine  of  nature's  laws.  On  the  very 
threshold  of  the  discussion,  therefore,  we  meet  the 
skeptic  with  the  pertinent  question  which  Paul  put 
to  king  Agrippa,  "  Why  should  it  be  thought  a 
thing  incredible  with  you,  that  God  should  raise 
the  dead  f  (Acts  xxvi.  8). 

II.  It  will  be  admitted  that  it  is  a  possible  thing 
for  competent  witnesses  to  have  undoubted  evidence 
of  the  resurrection  of  a  person  from  the  dead.  No 
one  can  deny  that  there  would  be  great  danger  of 
deception  or  delusion  in  asserting  such  a  fact,  for 
many  have  mistaken  for  death  only  a  protracted 
swoon,  or  a  long  continued  suspension  of  the  vital 
powers  ;  and  many  have  supposed  and  even  insisted 
that  their  departed  friends  have  actually  appeared 
to  them,  when  they  have  had  no  other  ground  for 
their  belief  than  the  play  of  an  excited  imagination. 
But  if  a  number  of  credible  witnesses  were  inti- 
mately and  constantly  associated  with  a  person 
during  his  life,  if  they  had  the  most  complete  and 
unquestioned  proof  of  his  death,  and  if  afterwards 
they  distinctly  and  repeatedly  saw  him  alive,  under 
circumstances  that  could  leave  no  room  whatever 
for  halhicination,  attended  by  results  of  the  most 
momentous  character,  that  could  not  by  any 
ingenuity  be  explained  in  any  other  way  than  by 
the  genuineness  of  the  resurrection,  it  is  obvious 


142  IS  THE  BIBLE   THUE  ! 

"  that  the  untruth  of  such  evidence  would  be  more 
difficult  to  conceive  than  the  reality  of  that  which 
it  was  intended  to  prove."  It  will  not  do  for  the 
skeptic  to  reply  that  it  is  impossible  for  the  dead 
to  arise,  as  this  is  a  weak  and  puerile  begging  the 
question,  that  renders  the  man  who  obstinately 
urges  it  utterly  unworthy  of  further  notice.  All 
will  concede  that  it  is  impossible  for  a  dead  person 
to  come  forth  from  the  grave;  but  it  was  not 
impossible  for  a  divine  person  to  arise  out  of  the 
tomb,  nor  was  it  impossible  for  God  to  lift  the  iron 
crown  of  death  from  the  brow  of  His  only  begotten 
and  well  beloved  Son. 

III.  It  will  be  admitted  that  if  competent  wit- 
nesses of  such  a  fact  bear  such  testimony  concern- 
ing it,  that  when  carefully  sifted  and  thoroughly 
tested  by  friend  and  foe,  it  is  found  to  be  altogether 
trustworthy  in  every  respect,  we  are  not  only 
authorized,  but  morally  bound,  to  receive  it  as  true. 
The  character  of  the  witnesses  must  be  closely 
scrutinized;  they  must  bear  the  severest  cross- 
examination  without  flinching,  and  without  con- 
tradicting each  other's  testimony ;  they  must  have 
their  motives  and  purposes  in  giving  such  testimony 
brought  out  into  the  clearest  light;  and  they  must 
submit  to  the  most  rigid  inquiry  with  regard  to  the 
practical  bearing  and  consequences  of  their 
assertion  ;  but  if  after  all  this  no  flaw  can  be  found 
in  their  story,  the  refusal  to  receive  it  will  prove 
conclusively  that  the  difficulty  in  the  way  of 
believing  the  resurrection  of  Jesus  is  not  found  in 
the  head,  unless  it  be  the  head  of  an  idiot,  but  in 


THE  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS.      143 

the  state  of  the  heart  as  deceitful  above  all  things, 
and  desperately  wicked,  as  in  itself  enmity  against 
God.  His  resurrection  as  everywhere  set  forth  in 
the  New  Testament  is  not  represented  as  a  solitary 
fact,  or  as  some  unaccountable  display  of  almighty 
power,  but  it  is  essentially  connected  with  His 
high  claims,  previously  noticed;  and  it  forms  so 
exclusively  the  foundation  of  every  doctrine,  every 
duty,  e  /ery  hope,  every  joy,  held  out  to  us  by  the 
sacred  writers  that,  if  torn  away,  the  New  Testa- 
ment, the  Church  for  eighteen  centuries,  Chris- 
tianity itself,  our  departed  friends,  our  own 
aspirations  and  longings,  all,  all  instantly  sink  out 
of  sight  into  profoundest  darkness.  There  is, 
therefore,  the  most  perfect  agreement  between  His 
claims  and  His  resurrection,  for  while  he  could  die 
as  the  Son  of  man.  He  could  not  remain  under  the 
dominion  of  death  as  the  Son  of  God,  "  because," 
as  Peter  says,  "  it  was  not  possible  that  he  should 
be  holden  of  it,"  (Acts  ii.  24). 

IV.  This  brings  us  to  glance  at  the  relation 
between  the  resurrection  of  Jesus  and  the  entire 
Bible,  that  are  so  linked  together  from  first  to  last 
they  must  stand  or  fall  together.  Going  back  to 
the  earliest  records  of  the  human  race  we  are  told 
that  God  said  to  the  serpent,  elsewhere  called  the 
devil  and  Satan,  "  I  will  put  enmity  between  thee 
and  the  woman,  and  between  thy  seed  and  her 
seed  [not  mmi'^s  seed,  it  will  be  observed] :  it  shall 
bruise  thy  head,  and  thou  shalt  bruise  his  heel," 
(Gen.  iii.  15).  From  that  time  the  promise  of  a 
divine  Deliverer  is  set  forth  with  ever-increasing 


144  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

brightness,  in  type,  in  i^rophecy,  and  in  song  ;  and 
it  is  a  promise  always  involving  His  death  and 
resurrection.  For  examjile,  in  the  cure  and  cleans- 
ing of  the  leper,  which  could  be  effected  only  by 
the  immediate  interposition  of  God,  we  find  that 
two  birds  were  taken,  one  of  which  was  killed  in 
an  earthen  vessel  over  runniug  water,  and  the  live 
bird  having  been  dipped  in  the  blood  of  the  slain 
bird  was  let  go  to  soar  away  to  heaven,  bearing 
upon  its  wings,  as  it  were,  the  token  of  accomp- 
lished sacrifice.  (Lev.  xiv.  5-7).  So  on  the  great 
day  of  atonement,  two  goats  were  chosen,  one  of 
which  was  slain,  and  its  blood  carried  by  the  high 
priest  into  the  most  holy  place,  was  sprinkled  upon 
the  mercy  seat,  and  seven  times  before  the  mercy 
seat;  and  the  live  goat,  having  had  all  the  sins  and 
transgressions  of  Israel  imputed  to  it,  typically 
bore  away  their  guilt,  thus  picturing  the  efficacy  of 
the  death  and  resurrection  of  One  who  was  to  die 
for  the  sins  of  the  people,  and  to  rise  again.  Still 
later  we  hear  this  august  x^ersonage  saying  to  His 
Father,  "  Thou  wilt  not  leave  my  soul  in  hades 
[the  place  of  departed  spirits] ;  neither  wilt  thou 
suffer  thine  Holy  One  to  see  corruption, '^  (Ps.  xvi. 
10) ;  and  again,  "  Thy  dead  men  shall  live,  together 
with  my  dead  body  shall  they  arise,"  (Isa.  xxvi. 
19) ;  and  again,  "  It  pleased  the  Lord  to  bruise  him ; 
he  hath  put  him  to  grief :  when  thou  shalt  make  his 
soul  an  offering  for  sin,  he  shall  see  his  seed,  he  shall 
prolong  his  days,  and  the  pleasure  of  the  Lord  shall 
prosper  in  his  hand.  He  shall  see  of  the  travail  of 
his  soul,  and  shall  be  satisfied,"  (Isa.  liii.  10,  11). 


THE   RESTJRREOTION   GF  JESUS.  145 

These  are  mere  illustratious  of  the  general  drift 
of  the  Old  Testament  concerning  the  predicted 
Messiah  who,  according  to  the  declarations  of  the 
New  Testament  writers  and  of  Jesus  Himself,  was 
held  np  in  symbol  to  the  contemplation  of  the  Jews 
in  all  the  services  of  the  tabernacle  and  temple,  in 
events  of  national  importance  and  in  the  ordinary 
incidents  of  family  and  individual  life,  so  that  He 
became  the  sum  and  the  substance,  the  centre  and 
the  circumference  of  the  ancient  Scriptures,  that 
have  no  interest  and  no  significance  apart  from  His 
anticipated  death  and  resurrection.  Moreover  the 
prophets  rose  to  their  loftiest  and  sublimest 
strains  in  foretelling,  not  His  sufferings  only, 
when  wounded  for  our  transgressions  and  bruised 
for  our  iniquities,  but  especially  in  announcing  His 
second  advent  to  earth  amid  the  pomp  of  supreme 
royalty  and  the  pageantry  of  the  skies.  With  this 
second  advent  all  the  hopes  of  the  Hebrews  as  a 
people,  so  marvellously  preserved  through  the 
ages,  are  bound  up;  and  it  is  this  alone  that 
throws  light  upon  their  strange  history,  about 
which  Hegel,  it  is  said  by  his  biographer,  having 
often  thought,  and  often  changed  his  thoughts, 
confessed  that  "  all  his  life  long  it  tormented  him  as 
a  dark  enigma.'^  It  is  the  time  when  their  banner, 
that  has  been  trampled  in  the  dust  for  twenty-five 
hundred  years  by  the  Babylonian,  the  Persian,  the 
Greek,  the  Eomau,  the  Mohammedan,  and  the 
Gentile  world  at  large,  shall  float  again  in  triumph 
from  the  battlements  of  Mount  Ziou ;  but  every 
one  of  the  many  scores  of  predictions  of  their 
9 


146  IS   THE   BIBLE   TRUE? 

present  shame  is  connected  with  the  death  of  their 
Messiah,  as  every  prediction  of  their  future  glory 
is  connected  with  His  resurrection. 

Y.  Such  then  to  an  intelligent  faith  was  the 
expectation  that  waited  on  the  coming  of  the  Mes- 
siah; and  apart  from  the  fact  that  more  than  a 
hundred  minute  i^redictions  concerning  Him  are 
said  in  the  New  Testament  to  have  been  fulfilled  in 
the  person,  and  ministrj^,  and  sufferings  of  Jesus, 
we  discover  that  the  latter  distinctly  and  repeatedly 
spoke  of  His  approaching  death  and  resurrection. 
We  need  go  no  further  at  present  than  the  Gospel 
of  Matthew,  which  Strauss  insists  is  the  most 
trustworthy,  and  it  is  laden  with  the  burden  of  His 
coming  woe,  but  light  with  the  victory  that  would 
follow.  It  is  easy  to  x^erceive  that  from  first  to 
last  He  walked  in  the  shadow  of  the  cross,  which 
He  beheld  looming  against  the  sky,  but  beyond 
the  gloom  the  future  was  radiant  to  His  eye  with 
the  brightness  of  resurrection  joy.  Hence  at  the 
very  beginning  of  His  ministry  He  speaks  of  those 
who  are  reviled  and  persecuted  for  His  sake  (Matt. 
V.  11) ;  of  false  i:>rophets  standing  before  Him  in  a 
day  that  lies  on  the  other  side  of  death  (vii.  22) ; 
of  taking  the  cross  and  following  Him  even  to  the 
grave  (x.  38,  39)  ;  of  continuing  three  days  and 
three  nights  in  the  heart  of  the  earth  (xii.  40)  ;  and 
of  sending  forth  His  angels  in  the  harvest  of  the 
world  to  gather  out  of  His  kingdom  all  things  that 
offend,  and  them  which  do  iniquity  (xiii.  41).  Still 
more  distinctly,  when  Peter  confessed  Him  to  be 
the  Christ,  or  Messiah,  the  vSon  of  the  living  God, 


THE  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS.      147 

"  from  that  time  forth  began  Jesus  to  show  unto 
his  disciples,  how  that  he  must  go  unto  Jerusalem, 
and  suffer  manj^  things  of  the  elders  and  chief 
priests,  and  scribes,  and  be  killed,  and  be  raised 
again  the  third  day,"  (xvi.  21).  Again,  after  the 
transfiguration,  that  gave  a  glimpse  of  His  prom- 
ised kingdom,  while  He  and  the  disciples  abode  in 
Galilee,  "Jesus  said  uulo  them.  The  Son  of  man 
shall  be  betrayed  into  the  hands  of  men ;  and  they 
shall  kill  him,  and  the  third  day  he  shall  be  raised 
again,''  (xvii.  22,  23).  This  is  succeeded  by  the 
announcement  that  those  who  had  followed  Him,, 
in  the  regeneration,  when  the  Son  of  man  shall^sit 
upon  the  throne  of  His  glory,  should  also  sit  upon 
twelve  thrones  judging  the  twelve  tribes  of  Israel 
(xix.  28) ;  and  this  by  another  distinct  statement 
that  "  Jesus  going  up  to  Jerusalem,  took  the  twelve 
disciples  apart  in  the  way,  and  said  unto  them,, 
Behold,  we  go  up  to  Jerusalem ;  and  the  Son  of 
man  shall  be  betrayed  unto  the  chief  j)riests  and 
unto  the  scribes,  and  they  shall  condemn  him  to 
death,  and  shall  deliver  him  to  the  Gentiles,  to 
mock,  and  to  scourge,  and  to  crucify  him :  and  the 
third  day  he  shall  rise  again,"  (xx.  17,  19). 

Then  comes  the  prediction  of  His  death,  as  the 
Son  of  God,  in  the  parable  of  the  vineyard  (xxi. 
37-39) ;  then  His  defence  of  the  doctrine  of  the 
resurrection  against  the  Sadducees  in  His  signifi- 
cant reproof,  "  Ye  do  err,  not  knowing  the  script- 
ures, nor  the  power  of  God,"  and  in  the  sublime 
declaration,  "  God  is  not  the  God  of  the  dead,  but 
of  the  living,"   (xxii.  29,32);    then  his  sorrowful 


148  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

farewell  to  Jerusalem,  whose  children  should  see 
Him  no  more,  till  they  would  say  in  the  extremity 
of  their  distress,  "  Blessed  is  he  ttiatcomethin  the 
name  of  the  Lord,"  (xxiii.  37-39) ;  then  two  entire 
chapters  declaring  that  immediately  after  a  tribu- 
lation yet  future,  of  which  the  destruction  of  the 
sacred  city  by  Titus  was  a  faint  type,  "  shall  all 
the  tribes  of  the  earth  mourn,  and  they  shall  see 
the  Son  of  man  coming  in  the  clouds  of  heaven, 
with  1^0 wer  and  great  glory,"  (xxiv.  30) ;  that  when 
His  Church  is  wrapped  in  the  deep  sleep  of  spirit- 
ual insensibility,  at  midnight  a  cry  shall  be  heard, 
*'  Behold,  the  bridegroom  cometh ;  go  ye  out  to 
meet  him,"  (xxv.  6) ;  that  during  the  period  of  His 
absence  from  the  earth  He  commits  certain  talents 
to  His  servants,  and  "  after  a  long  time,  the  lord  of 
those  servants  cometh,  and  reckoneth  with  them," 
(xxv.  19) ;  that  "  when  the  Son  of  man  shall  come 
in  his  glory,  and  all  the  holy  angels  with  him,  then 
shall  he  sit  upon  the  throne  of  his  glory:  and 
before  him  shall  be  gathered  all  nations,"  (xxv. 
31);  then  His  solemn  testimony  at  His  trial  before 
the  high  priest,  when  put  upon  His  oath,  or 
adjured  by  the  liviug  God  to  say  plainly  whether 
He  was  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  God,  "I  am,"  as 
Mark  has  it,  and  "  hereafter  shall  ye  see  the  Son 
of  man  sitting  on  the  right  hand  of  jjower,  and 
coming  in  the  clouds  of  heaven,"  (xxvi.  64) ;  then 
the  account  of  His  death,  followed  by  the  state- 
ment that  when  His  body  was  in  the  grave,  "  the 
chief  priests  and  Pharisees  came  together  unto 
Pilate,  saying.  Sir,  we  remember  that  that  deceiver 


THE  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS.      149 

said,  while  lie  was  yet  alive,  After  three  days  I 
will  rise  again,"  and  procuring  a  band  of  soldiers 
to  watch  the  tomb,  "  lest  his  disciples  come  by 
night,  and  steal  him  away,  and  say  unto  the  people,, 
He  is  risen  from  the  dead  ;  so  the  last  error  shall 
be  worse  than  the  first,"  (xxvii.  62-66) ;  and  then 
the  narrative  of  His  resurrection  and  His  subse- 
quent appearance  to  the  disciples  (xxviii).  Such 
is  an  imperfect  outline  of  the  references  to  the 
resurrection  contained  in  the  Gospel  of  Matthew, 
which,  you  must  remember,  Strauss  regards  as  the 
most  trustworthy.  These  references  are  so  inter- 
woven with  the  entire  structure  of  the  book  that, 
if  removed,  there  would  be  no  Gospel  by  Matthew ; 
and  although  Jesus,  in  prophesying  such  things  of 
Himself,  may  be  for  Strauss  nothing  but  a  fanatic, 
or  a  braggart  and  an  imposter,  still  it  is  certain 
that  He  did  repeatedly  and  constantly  prophesy 
such  things  of  Himself  according  to  the  testimony 
of  one  whom  Strauss  recognizes  as  the  most  trust- 
worthy witness.  It  does  not  concern  us  to  know 
what  opinion  Strauss  chose  to  entertain  of  the 
character  of  Jesus,  but  it  does  concern  us  to  know 
that  Jesus  plainly  and  frequently  predicted  His 
resurrection. 

VI.  This  is  a  suitable  connection  in  which  to 
notice  the  various  accounts  of  the  resurrection,  as 
given  by  Matthew,  Mark,  Luke,  and  John.  Would 
that  there  was  time  to  take  up  one  by  one  the 
charges  which  Strauss  brings  of  conflicting  and 
contradictory  testimony  in  these  accounts,  that  as 
his   charges  are  confuted   and   completely   swept 


150  IS   THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

away,  the  hearts  of  Christians  might  burn  within 
them,  like  the  hearts  of  the  two  disciples  walking 
to  Emmaus,  when  the  risen  Jesus  talked  with  them 
by  the  way,  and  while  He  opened  to  them  the 
scriptures.  The  mistake  of  Strauss  and  all  his 
class  of  writers  in  dealing  with  the  accounts  of  the 
resurrection .  consists  in  their  failure  to  see  the 
different  design  of  the  Holy  Ghost  in  each  of  the 
four  Gospels,  or,  if  this  expression  offends  them, 
the  different  purposes  of  the  four  human  writers. 
Thus  it  is  apparent  to  all  who  have  really  studied 
the  Gospels,  that  it  was  the  i^urpose  of  Matthew  to 
set  forth  Jesus  specially  in  His  relation  to  the  Jews 
as  the  son  of  David,  and  son  of  Abraham,  and  Lion 
of  the  tribe  of  Judah,  disowned  and  rejected  indeed, 
and  going  out  in  grace  to  meet  the  need  of  sinful 
Gentiles.  It  was  the  purpose  of  Mark  to  proclaim 
Him  as  the  obedient  servant,  prom^jt  to  do  God's 
bidding,  coming,  not  to  be  ministered  unto,  but  to 
minister.  It  was  the  purpose  of  Luke  to  reveal 
Him  in  His  broadest  aspects  as  the  Son  of  man; 
and  it  was  the  purpose  of  John  to  show  Him  to  the 
world  as  the  Son  of  God,  the  heavenl3^  stranger, 
tarrying  a  little  while  on  earth  to  die,  that  whoso- 
ever believeth  on  Him  may  not  perish,  but  have 
everlasting  life,  and  then  returning  to  the  bosom  of 
the  Father. 

Hence  it  was  not  the  wish  of  either  to  furnish  a 
comx)lete  narrative  of  the  resurrection,  or  of  many 
other  facts  in  the  life  of  our  Lord,  but  only  the 
features  that  were  in  accordance  with  the  aim  of 
each  book  ;  and  this  is  found  upon  examination  to 


THE   RESURRECTION   OF   JESTTS.  151 

be  true  in  their  accounts  of  the  resurrection  which, 
however  diversified  in  certain  details,  and  inde- 
pendent in  one  sense,  are  in  perfect  harmony  with 
each  other,  and  with  the  end  each  writer  had  in 
view  in  preparing  his    particular  history.     But 
would  it  not  have  been  an  easy  task  to  make  their 
accounts  precisely  similar  in  every  respect?     One 
of   these  books   was   written  before   the  others, 
Matthew,    the    most    trustworthy,    according    to 
Strauss,  being  the  first,  and  as  previously  shown, 
it  was  soon  publicly  read  at  least  once  every  week 
in   a  multitude   of    congregations.     When   Mark, 
Luke,  and  John  subsequently  concluded,  speaking 
after  the  manner  of  men,  to  furnish  their  own  nar- 
ratives, it  would  have  been  a  very  simple  thing, 
which  a  child  could  accomplish,  to  copy  word  for 
word,  the  account  already  given  by  Matthew.    Yet 
if  this  had  been  done,  what  a  howl  would   have 
been  raised  by  infidelity,  calling  attention  to  the 
positive  proof  of  collusion  and  forgery  !     As  it  was 
not  done,  infidelity  turns  upon  you  with  the  asser- 
tion that  the  accounts  contain  contradictory  testi- 
mony, showing  how  utterly  impossible  it  is  to 
satisfy  a  skeptical  spirit,  no  matter  what  the  Bible 
says.    But  even  the  most  skeptical  spirit  will  be 
compelled  to  admit  that  the  four  Gospels  precisely 
agree  in  all  the  leading  facts  connected  with  the 
resurrection.    They  all  agree  in  asserting  the  real 
death  of  Jesus  on  the  Cross.     They  all  agree  in 
saying  that  His  body  was  buried  in  the  toml)  of 
Joseph   of   Arimathea,    with   whom,   John   adds, 
iTicodemus  also  came,  having  obtained  permission 


152  IS    THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

from  Pilate  to  dispose  of  the  remains;  for  as 
Strauss  says,  "  there  was  a  Eoman  law  which  gave 
the  bodies  of  criminals  so  executed  to  their  rela- 
tions or  friends,  if  they  themselves  asked  for  them," 
(Vol.  I.  p.  396).  They  all  agree  in  regard  to  the 
statement  that  certain  women  went  first  to  the 
sepulchre  early  on  the  morning  of  the  first  day  of 
the  week ;  they  all  agree  that  these  women  found 
the  stone  rolled  away  from  the  mouth  of  the  sepul- 
chre, and  the  sepulchre  itself  empty;  and  they 
all  agree  that  the  resurrection  had  previously 
occurred ;  though  no  one  of  them  tells  us  that  any 
mortal  eye  saw  Him  rise,  nor  do  they  inform  us  as 
to  the  manner  of  His  resurrection,  which  they 
would  surely  have  done,  if  the  story  had  been  an 
invention  of  their  own. 

Let  us  now  bring  these  separate  accounts  to- 
gether in  their  minutest  particulars,  and  see 
whether  Christians  will  not  have  occasion  to 
admire  and  adore  the  divine  wisdom  and  love  that 
so  marvellously  protected  the  obviously  honest 
narratives  against  every  theory  which  would  deny 
their  perfect  credibility.  Jesus  hanging  on  the 
cross,  having  cried,  not  with  a  faint  voice  indicat- 
ing a  swoon,  but  with  a  loud  voice,  "  Father,  into 
thy  hands  I  commend  my  spirit,"  bowed  His  head, 
and  gave  up  the  ghost.  It  was  about  the  ninth 
hour,  or  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  of  Friday, 
that  is,  three  hours  before  the  commencement  of 
the  Jewish  Sabbath.  Because  it  was  the  prepara- 
tion, soldiers  came  at  the  request  of  the  Jewish 
rulers,  and  with  the  consent  of  Pilate,  to  hasten 


THE   RESURRECTION   OF  JESU8.  153 

the  death  of  the  three  who  were  crucified,  aud  who 
might  have  lingered  in  their  agony  for  a  day  or  two ; 
but  finding  that  Jesus  was  already  dead,  they  brake 
not  his  legs,  though  one  of  the  soldiers  with  a  spear 
l)ierced  his  side,  making  his  death  doubly  sure. 
Immediately  afterwards,  Joseph  of  Arimathea 
arrived,  and  with  the  assistance  of  Nicodemus, 
took  down  the  body,  and  having  wrapped  it  in  a 
linen  cloth,  with  such  perfumes  as  the  latter 
brought,  he  placed  it,  Matthew  says,  in  his  own 
new  tomb,  which  Mark  tells  us  was  hewn  out  of  a 
rock,  and  Luke  and  John  add,  "  wherein  never 
man  before  was  laid."  Matthew  aud  Mark  state 
that  Mary  Magdalene,  and  Mary,  the  mother  of 
James  and  Joses,  among  other  women,  beheld 
where  He  was  laid,  while  Luke  describes  them  as 
the  women  "  which  came  with  him  from  Galilee,'^ 
and  also  states  that  they  returned  to  the  city, 
*'and  prepared  spices  and  ointments,  and  rested 
the  sabbath  day,  according  to  the  commandment." 
The  first  day  of  the  week,  very  early  in  the 
morning  ac^'ordiug  to  Luke,  when  it  was  yet  dark 
according  to  John,  as  it  began  to  dawn  according 
to  Matthew,  these  women  came,  bringing  the  spices 
they  had  prepared  as  Mark  and  Luke  assert,  Mark 
telling  us  that  though  it  was  very  early  in  the 
morning  when  they  left  home,  they  came  unto  the 
sepulchre  at  the  rising  of  the  sun,  and  we  know 
how  brief  is  the  interval  in  that  latitude  between 
the  dawn  and  the  morning.  John  mentions  only 
Mary  Magdalene,  but  he  states  that  when  she  saw 
the  empty  sepulchre,  she  ran  at  once  to  Peter  and 


154  IS    THE   BIBLE   TRUE? 

John,  who  are  always  represented  as  intimately 
associated,  exclaiming,  "  They  have  taken  away  the 
Lord  out  of  the  sepulchre,  and  ice  know  not  where 
they  have  laid  him."  She  did  not  say,  J  know  not, 
but  ive  know  not,  furnishing  the  strongest,  because 
unintentional,  evidence  that  other  women  were 
with  her.  It  is  pitiful  weakness  on  the  part  of 
Strauss,  utterly  unworthy  of  his  tine  intellect,  to 
accuse  the  four  Evangelists  of  contradicting  each 
other,  because  they  do  not  mention  the  same  num- 
ber of  women,  or  of  angels,  or  because  Matthew 
speaks  of  the  angel  that  sat  on  the  stone  at  the 
time  of  the  earthquake,  and  Mark  describes  him 
as  sitting  in  the  sepulchre  when  the  women  entered. 
Four  Americans  on  a  visit  to  London  might  see 
the  Queen  accompanied  by  her  children  and  officers 
riding  in  state  through  the  streets  on  some  occasion 
of  national  interest.  One  of  them  might  write 
home  saying  that  the  Queen  had  appeared  on  the 
streets  ;  another  that  the  Queen  and  the  Prince  of 
Wales  had  appeared  ;  another  that  ther  Queen  and 
the  Prince  and  Princess  had  appeared;  another 
that  the  royal  household  had  appeared  ;  but  there 
would  be  no  contradiction  in  their  testimony  unless 
one  or  the  other  of  the  writers  should  affirm  that 
only  those  they  had  chosen  to  name  had  been  seen. 
So  it  is  here.  John  speaks  of  Mary  Magdalene; 
Matthew  speaks  of  Mary  Magdalene,  and  the  other 
Mary  ;  Mark  speaks  of  Mary  Magdalene,  and  Mary 
the  mother  of  James,  and  Salome ;  Luke  speaks  of 
Mary  Magdalene,  and  Joanna,  and  Mary  the  mother 
of  James,  and  other  women  that  were  with  them ; 


THE  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS.      155 

and  there  is  no  contradiction  whatever.  The  same 
remark  may  be  made  concerning  the  angels  who 
are  represented  as  appearing  at  different  times  and 
places  in  connection  with  the  momentons  event, 
now  sitting  on  the  stone,  then  in  the  sepulchre, 
then  speaking  to  the  women.  The  same  remark 
may  be  made  about  the  actions  of  the  women,  for 
Mary  ran  back  to  the  disciples  the  moment  she 
perceived  that  Jesus  was  not  in  the  sepulchre, 
while  the  others  remained  and  saw  the  angels. 
Peter  and  John  at  once  proceeded  with  her,  the 
latter  outrunning  the  former,  and,  looking  into  the 
empty  sepulchre,,  believed ;  but  the  former  was 
simply  perplexed,  and  wondering  in  himself, 
departed.  Luke  mentions  only  Peter,  but  he  does 
not  say  that  John  was  not  with  him,  nor  does  he 
say  that  Peter  did  not  visit  the  sepulchre  twice  that 
great  morning,  as  he  probably  did  at  the  time  the 
Lord  appeared  to  him  alone.  Meanwhile  the  other 
women  having  fled  in  terror,  speaking  to  no  one  by 
the  way,  but  hurrying  at  once  to  the  disciples, 
Mary  stood  without  weeping,  and  it  was  during  this 
second  visit  Jesus  appeared  to  her,  as  He  was  in 
the  act  of  ascending  to  the  Father.  The  disciples 
generally  regarded  the  words  of  the  women,  who 
reported  the  vision  of  angels,  as  idle  tales,  and  two 
of  them  immediately  left  the  city  for  the  village  of 
Emmaus,  not  having  received  the  latest  intelligence. 
But  at  least  one  of  the  women  had  returned  to  the 
sepulchre,  and  in  company  with  Mary  Magdalene 
was  coming  into  the  city  the  second  time  when 
Jesus  met  them,  saying,  "  All  hail !"  and  permitted 


156  IS   THE   BIBLE   TRUE? 

them  to  fall  at  His  feet  and  worship  Him.  Even 
then  the  disciples  believed  not,  nor  would  they 
credit  His  resurrection  until  He  had  appeared  to 
the  entire  number. 

But  surely  it  is  needless  to  push  this  investi- 
gation farther.  If  any  honest  inquirer  after  truth 
will  take  four  Bibles  and,  opening  to  the  accounts 
of  the  resurrection,  will  place  them  side  by  side, 
carefully  comparing  them  in  all  their  details,  he 
will  soon  become  convinced  that  the  apparent  dis- 
crepancies are  easily  reconciled,  and  that  too  by  no 
forced  interpretation,  nor  by  the  suppression  of  a 
single  fact  recorded  in  any  of  the  narratives.  IS^ay, 
the  transparent  candor  and  j^erfect  credibility  of 
each  writer,  and  the  entire  freedom,  that  is  manifest, 
from  all  straming  at  effect  and  all  anxiety  as  to  the 
reception  of  the  story,  will  grow  upon  him  with 
increasing  power,  and  he  will  say  to  himself  again 
and  again,  it  is  absolutely  impossible  that  these 
narratives  could  have  been  the  inventions  of 
forgery,  or  the  products  of  an  excited  imagination, 
for  the  art  required  to  produce  them  would  be  in 
itself  something  suj^ernatural.  They  are  narra- 
tives which  for  eighteen  hundred  years  have  been 
most  closely  and  critically  scanned  by  thousands, 
and  tens  of  thousands,  and  hundreds  of  thousands, 
of  the  ablest  minds  of  Christendom,  for  it  is  by  no 
means  true  that  all  the  intellectual  greatness  and 
honesty  and  learning  belong  to  the  infidels,  and  not 
onl}^  have  these  minds  failed  to  discover  the 
slightest  discrepancy  in  the  accounts  of  the  resur- 
rection, but  they  have  studied  them  year  after  year 


THE   RESTJRRECTION  OF  JESUS.  157 

with  an  ever-deepening  impression  of  their  truth 
and  beauty  and  divinity.  Especially  have  they 
poured  out  unto  God  the  sacrifice  of  gladness  and 
gratitude,  when  they  have  found  in  the  Gospel 
history  of  the  resurrection  of  Jesus,  at  once  so 
simple  and  so  sublime,  the  crowning  proof  of  His 
rightful  claims  upon  their  confidence  and  love,  the 
sure  evidence  of  their  eternal  oneness  with  a  risen 
Christ,  and  the  strong  foundation  of  every  doctrine 
taught,  and  every  duty  enjoined,  and  every  hope 
held  forth  in  the  New  Testament. 

YII.  The  statement  just  made  will  be  fully  con- 
firmed if  we  look  for  a  moment  at  the  use  of  the 
resurrection  of  Jesus  made  by  the  Apostles.  It 
will  be  seen  that  every  doctrine,  every  duty,  and 
every  hope,  are  so  intimately  blended  with  the  fact 
of  His  resurrection,  that  the  denial  of  the  latter 
leads  to  the  instant  and  total  annihilation  of  the 
former.  Of  this  Strauss  takes  no  notice  whatever, 
and  yet  every  one  must  i^erceive  that  it  is  too 
important  to  be  overlooked.  Thus  the  opening 
statement  of  the  book  called  *'  The  Acts  of  the 
Apostles  "  assures  us  that  the  risen  Jesus  showed 
Himself  to  His  disciples,  or  as  the  Greek  word 
X^roperly  means.  He  demonstrated  Himself  to  be 
alive  after  His  passion,  by  many  infallible  proofs, 
being  seen  of  them  forty  days,  and  speaking  of  the 
things  pertaining  to  the  kingdom  of  God.  This  is 
followed  by  the  statement  that  when  He  had  given 
His  last  command  to  His  disciples,  while  they 
beheld,  He  was  taken  up,  and  a  cloud  received  Him 
out  of  their  sight ,  and  this  again  by  the  statement 


158  IS   THE  MBLE  TRITE  f 

that  in  the  selection  of  one  to  take  the  place  of 
Judas,  it  was  an  essential  qualification  of  an 
Apostle  that  he  must  be  a  personal  witness  with 
the  others  of  the  resurrection  of  Jesus,  (Acts  i. 
3,  9,  22).  In  the  next  chapter,  recording  the 
transactions  that  occurred  on  the  day  of  Pentecost, 
we  find  Peter  with  the  eleven  standing  in  Jerusalem, 
where  fifty  days  before  Jesus  had  been  put  to 
death,  and  charging  the  Jews  with  the  crime  of 
having  crucified  and  slain  Him,  '^  whom  God  hath 
raised  up,  having  loosed  the  pains  of  death ; 
because  it  was  not  possible  that  he  should  be 
holden  of  it ;  .  .  .  this  Jesus  hath  God  raised 
up,  whereof  we  are  all  witnesses,"  (Acts  ii.  24,  32). 
Was  there  any  denial  of  the  bold  charge  !  Was 
there  any  attempt  to  rebut  the  positive  testimony, 
where  it  could  have  been  so  readily  disproved,  if  it 
were  untrue  ?  Not  the  slightest ;  but  on  the  other 
hand  the  record  states,  and  its  correctness  has 
never  been  questioned,  that  three  thousand  of  the 
Jews,  pierced  to  the  heart  with  conviction,  were 
then  and  there  baptized  in  the  name  of  the  risen 
Jesus.  Why  did  not  the  rulers  of  the  Jews  expose 
the  body  of  Jesus,  and  thus  crush  Christianity  with 
a  blow?  Or  why  did  they  not  prove  that  the  wit- 
nesses to  the  resurrection  had  stolen  the  body  ? 
Or  why  did  these  witnesses,  but  a  few  days  before, 
accordiug  to  their  own  admission,  so  discouraged 
and  desponding  that  they  fied  like  a  flock  of 
frightened  sheep,  suddenly  stand  forth  with  an 
audacity  that  has  never  been  equalled  to  assert, 
not  in  some  distant  corner  of  the  land,  but  in  the 


THE  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS.      159 

very  city  where  Jesus  had  been  crucified,  His 
resurrectiou  from  the  dead  ?  The  whole  scene  is 
inconceivable  and  impossible,  if  the  Apostles  did 
not  only  firmly  believe,  but  knew,  that  He  was 
actually  risen. 

In  the  next  chapter  we  find  Peter  and  John 
saying  to  the  Jewish  rulers,  "  Ye  denied  the  Holy 
One  and  the  Just,  and  desired  a  murderer  to  be 
granted  unto  you,  and  killed  the  Prince  of  life, 
whom  God  hath  raised  from  the  dead;  whereof  we 
are  witnesses,"  (Acts  iii.  14,  15).  In  the  next 
chapter  they  say,  ''  Be  it  known  unto  you  all,  and 
to  all  the  people  of  Israel,  that  by  the  name  of 
Jesus  Christ  of  Nazareth',  whom  ye  crucified,  w'hom 
God  raised  from  the  dead,  even  by  him  doth  this 
man  stand  before  you  whole,"  (Acts  iv.  10).  In  the 
next  chapter  Peter  and  the  other  Apostles  say  to 
the  Sanhedrim,  "  The  God  of  our  fathers  raised  up 
Jesus,  whom  ye  slew  and  hanged  on  a  tree.  Him 
hath  God  exalted  with  his  right  hand  to  be  a  Prince 
and  a  Saviour,  for  to  give  repentance  to  Israel,  and 
forgiveness  of  sins,"  (Acts  v.  30, 31).  Can  any  one 
believe  that  they  would  have  spoken  in  this  man- 
ner to  their  own  civil  and  ecclesiastical  rulers, 
unless  they  knew  thcit  the  ground  on  which  they 
stood  was  unassailable?  But  it  would  be  weari- 
some, if  not  unprofitable,  to  continue  these  quota- 
tions, when  chapter  after  chapter  brings  out  the 
same  thing  over  and  over  again.  If  we  look  at 
Peter  j)reaching  to  the  Eoman  centurion  in  Csesa- 
rea,  he  tells  him  that  the  Apostles  are  witnesses  of 
all  things  which  Jesus  did,  "  whom  they  slew  and 


160  IS   THE   BIBLE   TRUE? 

hanged  on  a  tree ;  Him  God  raised  up  the  third 
day,  and  showed  him  openly,^'  (Acts  x.  40).  If  we 
look  at  Paul  preaching  to  the  Jews  at  Antioch  in 
Pisidia,  he  tells  them  of  Jesus,  and  says,  "  God 
raised  him  from  the  dead :  and  he  was  seen  many 
days  of  them  which  came  up  with  him  from  Galilee 
to  Jerusalem,  who  are  his  witnesses  unto  the  peo- 
ple," (Acts  xiii.  30,  31).  Or  if  we  look  at  Paul 
preaching  to  the  cultivated  Athenians  on  Mars' 
Hill,  he  tells  them  of  "Jesus  and  the  resurrection," 
adding  that  God  "  hath  appointed  a  day,  in  the 
which  he  will  judge  the  world  in  righteousness,  by 
that  man  whom  he  hath  ordained :  whereof  he 
hath  given  assurance  unto  all  men,  in  that  he  hath 
raised  him  from  the  dead,"  (Acts  xvii.  18,  31).  Or 
if  we  look  at  Paul  preaching  in  chains  to  King 
Agrippa,  imprisoned,  as  the  Eoman  Festus  ex- 
plained to  his  royal  guest,  on  account  of  certain 
questions  which  the  Jews  had  "  against  him  of 
their  own  superstition,  and  of  one  Jesus,  which 
was  dead,  whom  Paul  affirmed  to  he  alive,"  (Acts 
XXV.  19),  we  find  him  testifying  that  he  said  "none 
other  things  than  those  which  the  prophets  and 
Moses  did  say  should  come :  that  Christ  should 
suffer,  and  that  he  should  be  the  first  that  should 
rise  from  the  dead,"  and  moreover  affirming  that 
"this  thing  was  not  done  in  a  corner,"  and  so 
powerfully  affecting  his  distinguished  auditor  that 
"  Agrippa  said  unto  Paul,  Almost  thou  persuadest 
me  to  be  a  Christian,"  (Acts  xxvi.  22-28).  Again 
let  the  question  be  asked,  can  any  one  believe  that 
Paul  would  have  made  such  an  assertion,  in  such 


THE  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS.      161 

a  presence,  unless  lie  not  only  firmly  believed,  but 
Icneic  whereof  he  affirmed  ?  Would  it  not  have  been 
instantly  contradicted  and  disproved,  leaving  Paul 
convicted  as  an  impostor  or  as  insane?  Every- 
where in  the  preaching  of  the  Apostles,  the  resur- 
rection of  Jesus,  not  as  a  fancy  which  they  fondly 
cherished,  but  as  a  fact  of  which  they  were  compe- 
tent witnesses,  was  their  unvarying  theme  to  the 
high  and  the  low,  to  the  rich  and  the  poor,  to  the 
king  and  the  peasant,  to  the  philosopher  and  the 
child,  to  the  Jew  and  the  Gentile. 

But  this  is  not  all,  nor  the  half.  It  is  indisso- 
lubly  linked  with  every  part  and  particular  of  the 
Christian  faith.  (1)  It  is  an  essential  element  of 
the  Gospel.  "  I  declare  unto  you,"  says  Paul, 
"  the  gospel  which  I  preached  unto  you,"  and  then 
he  defines  the  gospel ;  "  for  I  delivered  unto  you 
first  of  all  that  which  I  also  received,  how  that 
Christ  died  for  our  sins  according  to  the  scriptures ; 
and  that  he  was  buried,  and  that  he  rose  again  the 
third  day  according  to  the  scriptures,"  (1  Cor.  xv. 
1-4) ;  "  Eemember  that  Jesus  Christ,  of  the  seed 
of  David,  was  raised  from  the  dead  according  to 
my  gospel,"  (2  Tim.  ii.  8).  (2)  It  is  essential  to  our 
salvation.  "  If  thou  shalt  confess  with  thy  mouth 
the  Lord  Jesus,  and  shalt  believe  in  thine  heart 
that  God  hath  raised  him  from  the  dead,  thou  shalt 
be  saved,"  (Eom.  x.  9).  (3)  It  is  essential  to  our 
justification.  Eighteousness  shall  be  imputed  to 
us  also,  "  if  we  believe  on  him  that  raised  up  Jesus 
our  Lord  from  the  dead ;  who  was  delivered  for  our 
offences,  and  raised  again  for  our  justification," 
10 


162  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

(Eom.  iv.  24  25).  (4)  It  is  essential  to  our  sancti- 
fication.  "Therefore  we  are  buried  with  him  by 
baptism  into  death :  that  like  as  Christ  was  raised 
up  from  the  dead  by  the  glory  of  the  Father,  even 
so  we  also  should  walk  in  newness  of  life  :  .  .  . 
Knowing  that  Christ,  being  raised  from  the  dead, 
dieth  no  more;  death  hath  no  more  dominion  over 
him  ;  .  .  .  Wherefore,  my  brethren,  ye  also  are 
become  dead  to  the  law  by  the  body  of  Christ;  that 
ye  should  be  married  to  another,  even  to  him  who 
is  raised  from  the  dead,  that  we  should  bring  forth 
fruit  unto  God,''  (Eom.  vi.  4-9 ;  vii.  4).  (5)  It  is 
essential  to  our  consecration.  "  The  love  of  Christ 
constraineth  us;  because  we  thus  judge,  that  if 
one  died  for  all,  then  were  all  dead :  and  that  he 
died  for  all,  that  they  which  live  should  not  hence- 
forth live  unto  themselves,  but  unto  him  which 
died  for  them,  and  rose  again,"  (2  Cor.  v.  14,  15 ; 
"for  to  this  end  Christ  both  died,  and  rose,  and 
revived,  that  he  might  be  Lord  both  of  the  dead 
and  living,"  (Eom.  xiv.  9) ;  "  If  ye  then  be  risen 
with  Christ,  seek  those  things  which  are  above, 
where  Christ  sitteth  on  the  right  hand  of  God," 
(Col.  iii.  1).  (6)  It  is  essential  to  our  safety. 
"  Who  is  he  that  condemneth  ?  It  is  Christ  that 
died,  yea,  rather,  that  is  risen  again,"  (Eom.  viii. 
34) ;  "  God,  who  is  rich  in  mercy,  for  his  great  love 
wherewith  he  loved  us,  even  when  we  were  dead  in 
sins,  hath  quickened  us  together  with  Christ,  (by 
grace  ye  are  saved;)  and  hath  raised  us  up  to- 
gether," (Eph.  ii.  4-6) ;  "  Buried  with  him  in  bap- 
tism, wherein  also  ye  are  risen  with  him  through 


THE  REStJRllECTlON  OF  JESUS.  163 

the  faith  of  the  operation  of  God,  who  hath  raised 
him  from  the  dead,"  (Col.  ii.  12).  (7)  It  is  essential 
to  our  hope.  "  Blessed  be  the  God  and  Father  of 
our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  which  according  to  his 
abundant  mercy  hath  begotten  us  again  to  a  lively 
hope  by  the  resurrection  of  Jesus  Christ  from  the 
dead,"  (1  Pet.  i.  3).  (8)  It  is  essential  to  our  own 
resurrection.  "  If  the  Spirit  of  him  that  raised  up 
Jesus  from  the  dead  dwell  in  you,  he  that  raised 
up  Christ  from  the  dead  shall  also  quicken  your 
mortal  bodies  by  his  Spirit  that  dwelleth  in  you," 
(Eom.  viii.  11);  ^'  For  if  we  believe  that  Jesus  died 
and  rose  again,  even  so  them  also  which  sleep  in 
Jesus  will  God  bring  with  him,"  (1  Thess.  iv.  14) ; 
"Every  man  in  his  own  order;  Christ  the  first 
fruits;  afterward  they  that  are  Christ's,  at  his 
coming,"  (1  Cor.  xv.  23).  Such  are  mere  exam])les 
of  the  way  in  which  the  resurrection  of  Jesus  is 
presented  throughout  the  New  Testament ;  and 
even  in  the  closing  book,  acknowledged  by  Strauss 
to  be  the  genuine  work  of  John,  He  is  everywhere 
described  as  risen,  and  ascended,  and  swaying  the 
sceptre  of  empire  amid  the  storms  that  shall  shake 
the  x^iliars  of  the  earth  in  the  last  and  perilous 
days,  and  coming  again  with  clouds,  when  "  every 
eye  shall  see  him,  and  they  also  which  pierced 
him,"  (Eev.  i.  7).  Take  away  the  literal  resurrec- 
tion of  Jesus  from  the  Bible,  and  as  Eenan  says 
about  the  consequences  of  His  removal  from 
humanity  and  the  world,  you  will  rend  it  to  its 
foundations. 

VIII.  The  resurrection  of  Jesus,  thus  proclaimed 


164  IS   THE  BIBLE  TRUE  ! 

all  tbrougli  the  Bible,  from  the  first  of  Genesis  to 
the  last  of  Revelation,  could  not  possibly  have 
been  a  myth,  but  must  have  been  a  real,  and  his- 
torical fact.  A  myth  is  the  representation  of  a 
religious  truth  in  the  form  of  a  fictitious  narrative, 
but  without  any  consciousness  of  the  difference 
between  them;  and  Strauss  labors  hard  to  prove 
that  there  was  no  objective  occurrence  which  gave 
rise  to  the  belief  in  the  resurrection  of  Jesus, 
which  he  admits  the  Apostles  firmly  held,  but  only 
a  subjective  impression  produced  on  their  minds 
by  a  vision  which  they  imagined  they  had  seen. 
With  due  respect  for  one  whose  intellect  we  are 
compelled  to  admire,  it  may  be  safely  said  that  a 
more  absurd  conceit  was  never  hatched  outside  the 
brain  of  a  madman.  A  number  of  men  who  did 
not  exhibit  a  single  trait  of  fanaticism,  possessing 
none  of  its  credulity,  extravagance,  ignorance, 
rashness,  self-conceit,  who  were  manifestly  calm, 
cool,  collected,  judicious,  giving  to  the  world  con- 
fessedly the  noblest  code  of  morals  it  has  ever 
known,  imparting  the  most  exalted  and  the  most 
rational  conceptions  of  God,  leaving  on  record 
commands  and  precepts  affecting  all  the  relations 
of  life  that  even  the  bitterest  skeptic  acknowledges 
are  eminently  wise,  and  all  of  which  are  based  on 
the  reality  of  the  resurrection  of  Jesus,  who  say 
of  themselves  that  at  the  time  of  His  death  they 
obstinately  and  utterly  rejected  the  first  reports  of 
His  resurrection,  went  all  over  the  world  asserting 
that  they  saw  Him  after  His  resurrection,  that  they 
saw  Him  repeatedly,  that  they  saw  Him  in  the  day 


THE  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS.      165 

time,  that  He  spoke  to  them  again  and  again,  direct- 
ing them  how  to  proceed  in  their  work,  that  He 
breathed  upon  them,  sajang,  Eeceive  ye  the  Holy 
Ghost,  that  He  ate  with  them,  that  He  showed 
them  the  print  of  the  nails  in  His  hands  and  of  the 
spear  wound  in  His  side,  that  He  demonstrated 
Himself  to  be  alive  after  His  passion  by  many 
infallible  proofs  during  the  space  of  more  than  a 
month,  and  that,  they  beheld  Him  visibly  ascend- 
ing to  heaven;  and  yet  Strauss  gravely  asks  us 
to  believe  that  all  this  was  a  fancy,  a  dream,  a 
delusion ! 

But  on  the  theory  that  the  resurrection  was  a 
myth  it  is  simply  impossible  to  account  for  the  con- 
duct of  one  of  these  witnesses,  who,  for  a  consid- 
erable period  after  the  death  of  Jesus,  was  not  only 
an  unbeliever,  but  a  ferocious  i^ersecutor  of  His 
disciples.  This  man,  on  one  of  his  persecuting 
excursions,  as  he  drew  near  to  Damascus,  was  sud- 
denly arrested,  as  he  declares,  by  a  great  light 
from  heaven  flashing  about  him  at  mid-day,  and  by 
the  sound  of  a  voice  saying  in  articulate  language, 
*' Saul,  Saul,  why  persecutest  thou  me!"  Over- 
whelmed with  amazement  and  awe,  he  replied, 
*'  Who  art  thou  f  when  again  came  the  audible 
words,  "  I  am  Jesus,  whom  thou  x^ersecutest."  It 
is  childish  in  Strauss  to  attempt  to  set  aside  the 
credibility  of  the  narrative,  because  in  one  account 
it  is  said,  that  the  men  which  journeyed  with  Saul 
stood  speechless,  hearing  a  voice  but  seeing  no 
man,  and  in  another  account  that  they  saw  indeed 
the  light,  and  were  afraid,  but  they  heard  not  the 


166  IS   THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

voice.  It  is  Luke  who  gives,  in  the  words  of  Paul, 
both  accounts,  and  surely  it  would  have  been  easy 
enough  for  him  to  avoid  the  contradiction  if  any 
had  existed.  But  he  speaks  after  the  manner  of  the 
Bible,  that  always  recognizes  the  difference  between 
the  circumcised  and  uncircumcised  ear,  and  it  is 
obvious  that  hejneans  to  say,  his  companions 
heard  the  sound,  but  did  not  understand  the  words 
that  were  uttered,  just  as  Jesus  a  little  while  before 
His  death  heard  the  voice  of  His  Father,  articu- 
lately saying,  "  I  have  both  glorified  it,  and  will 
glorify  it  again,"  while  the  people  that  stood  by, 
and  heard  it,  said  that  it  thundered,  (John  xii.  28, 
29).  This  explanation  is  fully  confirmed  by  the 
meaning  of  the  Greek  word,  which  implies  both 
''to  perceive  sound,"  and  "to  understand."  If 
the  narrative  is  not  true,  why  did  not  some 
of  the  soldiers  who  travelled  with  him  contradict 
it?  Why  did  Ananias  come  on  the  strength  of 
Paul's  myth  to  this  arch  enemy  of  Christianity? 
Why  did  Paul  challenge  investigation  both  before 
the  whole  multitude  of  Jews  in  Jerusalem,  (Acts 
xxii.),  and  before  king  Agrippa,  (Acts  xxvi.);  and 
above  all,  why  did  Paul  become  a  Christian  and 
constantly  affirm  that  he  had  seen  the  risen  Jesus  ? 
"  Am  I  not  an  apostle  ?  am  1  not  free  ?  have  I  not 
seen  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord?"  (1  Cor.  ix.  1).  Baur, 
the  teacher  of  Strauss,  at  the  close  of  his  long  and 
critical  studies,  honestly  confessed  that  the  con- 
version of  Paul  was  a  mystery  which  could  be 
explained  only  by  "  the  miracle  of  the  resurrection," 
(Christianity  and  the  Christian  Church  in  the  First 


THE  RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS.      167 

Three  Centuries,  p.  45).  It  is  not  unkind  to  say- 
that  if  Strauss  had  been  as  magnanimous  as  he  was 
able,  he  would  have  made  the  same  confession,  and 
so  given  up  his  whole  undertaking ;  for  the  untruth 
of  such  evidence  is  surely  more  difficult  to  conceive 
than  the  reality  of  that  which  it  was  intended  to 
prove. 

Hear  this  last,  and  in  some  respects,  most 
important  witness,  in  the  Epistle  to  the  Corinthians, 
which  Strauss  and  all  other  skeptical  critics 
acknowledge  to  be  genuine.  After  stating  that  the 
resurrection  of  Jesus  is  a  fundamental  part  of  the 
gospel,  he  says,  "  He  was  seen  of  Cephas,  then  of 
the  twelve  :  after  that,  he  was  seen  of  above  five 
hundred  brethren  at  once ;  of  whom  the  greater 
part  remain  unto  this  present  [about  thirty 
years  after],  but  some  are  fallen  asleep.  [Did  they 
all  have  a  vision,  or  dream,  or  mere  subjective 
impression  without  any  objective  fact  to  justify  it, 
and  all  at  the  same  time?]  After  that,  he  was  seen 
of  James ;  then  of  all  the  apostles.  And  last  of  all 
he  was  seen  of  me  also,  as  of  one  born  out  of  due 
time,"  (1  Cor.  XV.  5-8).  Here  then  according  to  the 
testimony  of  a  man  whose  honesty  only  a  fool  or  a 
knave  can  question,  in  an  Epistle  of  undisputed 
authenticity,  we  have  a  number  of  appearances, 
which  added  to  those  in  the  four  Gospels  and  Acts, 
make  at  least  twelve,  under  circumstances  that 
utterly  preclude  the  idea  of  myth.  Eejecting  the 
literal  resurrection,  there  is  no  alternative  but  the 
conclusion  that  Paul  and  the  other  Apostles  were 
deliberate  and  wilful  liars,  and  this  conclusion  is  so 


168  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

monstrous  it  is  scorned  even  by  skeptics  who  pre- 
tend to  any  decency.  No  wonder,  therefore,  Paul 
adds,  "  If  Christ  be  not  risen,  then  is  our  i)reaching 
vain,  and  your  faith  is  also  vain.  Yea,  and  we  are 
found  false  witnesses  of  God;  because  we  have 
testified  of  God  that  he  raised  up  Christ :  whom  he 
raised  not  up,  if  so  be  that  the  dead  rise  not.  For 
if  the  dead  rise  not,  then  is  not  Christ  raised :  and 
if  Christ  be  not  raised,  your  faith  is  vain ;  ye  are 
yet  in  your  sins.  Then  they  also  which  are  fallen 
asleep  in  Christ  are  perished,"  (1  Cor.  xv.  14-18). 

Yes,  they  are  perished,  and  we  too  must  soon  lie 
down  in  the  dust,  not  only  beside  a  dead  Christ,  bat 
beside  a  dead  Christianity,  a  dead  Bible,  a  dead 
world.  We  look  up  in  our  helplessness  for  help, 
but  there  is  no  living  and  personal  God  to  meet  our 
cry  of  agony  with  a  fatherly  response,  or  to  bend 
the  laws  of  nature  even  once  before  the  expression 
of  His  infinite  love.  He  is  not  the  kind  Master,  but 
the  bound  slave  of  His  own  laws  ;  and  under  His 
government  darkness  is  superior  to  the  One  who 
announced  that  He  was  the  "Light;"  the  chains  of 
the  lost  are  stronger  than  the  One  who  proclaimed 
that  He  was  the  "  Way ;"  falsehood  is  mightier  than 
the  One  who  declared  He  was  the  "Truth;"  and 
death  has  conquered  Him  who  is  everywhere 
revealed  in  the  Gospels  as  the  "  Life."  If  the  resur- 
rection of  Jesus  is  a  myth,  all  the  teachings  of  the 
scriptures  that  rest  upon  it  are  myths,  all  the  faith* 
and  courage  and  endurance  of  the  martyrs  are  myths, 
all  the  achievements  of  His  disciples  are  myths,  all 
the  benevolence,   all   the  charity,   all  the  victory 


THE   EESIJRREOTION   OF   JESUS.  169 

gained  over  selfishness  and  sin,  all  the  stimulus  to 
human  enterprise,  all  the  alleviation  of  human 
sorrow,  all  the  history  of  the  race  for  fifteen 
hundred  years,  all  the  guidance  in  perplexity,  all 
the  solace  in  affliction,  all  the  hope  in  living,  all  the 
triumph  iu  dying,  known  by  countless  millions,  all, 
all  are  myths,  and  Jesus  Himself  is  a  myth. 

"  But  now  IS  Christ  risen  from  the  dead,  and 
become  the  first  fruits  of  them  that  slept  j"  for  as 
Beyschlag  has  well  said,  "  it  is  infinitely  easier  to 
admit  that  the  Christian  Church  is  the  offspring  of 
a  miracle,  than  to  imagine  it  born  of  a  lie.''  The 
miracle  of  His  resurrection  is  the  earnest  and  fore- 
runner of  even  a  grander  and  vaster  miracle,  when 
His  glad  shout  shall  ring  through  the  silence  of  the 
tomb,  and  a  great  multitude  that  no  man  can  num- 
ber, coming  forth  in  glorious,  ijowerful,  and 
immortal  bodies,  shall  be  caught  up  in  clouds  with 
living  saints,  changed  in  a  moment,  to  meet  Him  in 
the  air ;  "  and  so  shall  we  ever  be  with  the  Lord. 
Wherefore  comfort  one  another  with  these  words." 
If  it  please  Him  to  tarry  yet  longer,  the  believer  will 
soon  enter  the  grave,  as  a  quiet  resting  place  from 
the  strife  and  toil  of  earth ;  but  his  Christian  friends 
can  gather  around  it  to  lift  the  Hymn  of  Praise, 

"  Thou  hast  been  here,  Lord  Jesus ! 

But  Thou  art  here  no  more ; 
The  terror  and  the  darkness, 

The  night  of  death,  are  o'er. 
Great  Captain  of  salvation  ! 

Thy  triumphs  now  we  sing ; 
O  Grave,  where  is  thy  victory? 

O  Death,  where  is  thy  sting?" 


THE  BIBLE  ITS  OWN   WITNESS. 

l^rOT  long  since  a  Christian  was  requested  to 
-1-1  name  the  best  book  on  the  "  Divine  Origin  of 
the  Bible."  His  instant  answer  was,  "  The  Bible." 
This  is  so  true  it  almost  justifies  the  remark  of 
Coleridge  that  the  book  most  needed  is  one  which 
will  defend  Christianity  against  its  defenders.  No 
writer  probably  has  ever  undertaken  to  set  forth 
the  claims  of  the  Sacred  Scriptures  upon  the  faith 
and  veneration  of  men,  without  a  humiliating  con- 
sciousness, not  only  of  his  total  failure  to  present 
them  in  their  full  light,  but  of  his  own  inability  to 
comprehend  their  breadth  and  length  and  depth 
and  height.  Or  if  in  a  silly  conceit  of  his  sufficiency 
for  the  task,  he  has  no  such  consciousness,  others 
are  sure  to  detect  his  failure  for  him ;  for  they 
speedily  discover  that  in  comparison  with  what 
might  have  been  said  and  ought  to  have  been  said, 
his  brightest  arguments  are  but  as  the  flash  of  the 
fire-fly  attempting  to  impart  some  conception  of  the 
sun  shining  in  his  strength.  Hence  the  certainty 
with  which  every  jiublished  work  on  the ''  Evidences 
of  Christianity  "  is  pronounced  by  thoughtful  and 
thorough  students  of  the  Bible  to  be  unsatisfactory. 
The    reason  for  this   judgment,   so    uniformly 

170 


THE   BIBLE   ITS   OWN  WITNESS.  171 

rendered,  lies  in  the  vastness  of  the  subject,  which  is 
seen  only  by  thoughtful  and  thorough  students. 
The  child  looks  up  at  the  stars,  and  imagines  that 
they  are  very  small  and  within  reach  of  its  tiny 
grasp  ;  but  the  astronomer  walks  amid  these  count- 
less worlds  scattered  throughout  illimitable  space, 
until  his  spirit  is  overwhelmed  within  him.  The 
illiterate  rustic  ploughs  the  ground  with  no  knowl- 
edge of  the  earth  beneath  the  fertile  soil  and  the 
loose  stones  that  are  found  upon  the  surface ;  but 
to  the  eye  of  the  geologist  the  successive  strata 
reveal  wondrous  secrets,  and  force  him  to  exclaim, 
if  his  sense  keeps  pace  with  his  science,  "  Lord, 
thou  hast  been  our  dwelling  place  in  all  generations. 
Before  the  mountains  were  brought  forth,  or  ever 
thou  hadst  formed  the  earth  and  the  world,  even 
from  everlasting  to  everlasting  thou  art  God,"  (Ps. 
xc.  1,  2).  In  like  manner,  precisely  in  proportion 
to  the  infidel's  ignorance  of  the  Bible,  will  be  his 
confidence  that  it  is  unworthy  of  belief;  and  pre- 
cisely in  proportion  to  the  Christian's  acquaintance 
with  the  Bible,  will  be  his  conviction  that  none  but 
God  could  be  its  author,  so  that  at  each  step  of  his 
investigation  he  will  turn  to  its  defenders,  and  say 
in  the  language  the  queen  of  Sheba  addressed  to 
Solomon,  "  Howbeit  I  believed  not  the  words,  until 
I  came,  and  miue  eyes  had  seen  it ;  and,  behold,  the 
half  was  not  told  me,"  (1  Kings  x.  7). 

The  evidence  that  the  Bible  is  from  God  is  of  the 
same  character  that  proves  the  material  creation  to 
be  from  God,  and  it  would  be  as  difficult  to  con- 
vince an  intelligent  believer  that  the  former  is  the 


172  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

work  of  man,  as  to  convince  him  that  the  latter  is 
the  work  of  chance,  or  of  the  blind  laws  of  nature. 
But  with  the  former  as  with  the  latter,  it  is 
impossible  to  describe  all  the  tokens  and  demon- 
strations of  a  divine  authorship  that  are  suggested 
to  the  mind,  because  they  are  innumerable,  and  are 
ever  increasing  with  increasing  knowledge  and 
observation.  As  Bacon  says  in  his  Advancement 
of  Learning,  ^'  it  is  an  assured  truth,  and  a  con- 
clusion of  experience,  that  a  little  or  superficial 
knowledge  of  philosophy  may  incline  the  mind  of 
man  to  atheism,  but  a  farther  i)roceeding  therein 
doth  bring  the  mind  back  again  to  religion  ;"  and 
to  this  it  may  be  added  that  '*  a  farther  proceeding 
therein  doth  bring  the  mind  ^'  to  a  recognition  of 
its  own  weakness  when  surrounded  by  the  imposing 
symbols  of  Jehovah's  presence.  It  is  well  known 
that  Sir  Isaac  Newton,  when  complimented  on  his 
matchless  attainments  in  science,  declared  he 
was  like  a  little  child  x^icking  up  a  few  pebbles 
on  the  beach,  while  the  shoreless  ocean  of 
truth  rolled  before  him  unexplored;  and  that 
Sir  W.  Jones,  the  most  accomplished  scholar 
of  his  day  in  England,  stated  that  if  he  had  his  life 
to  go  over  he  would  study  nothing  but  the  Epistles 
of  St.  Paul.  This  may  appear  extravagant  to  those 
who  casually  read  the  Bible,  but  it  will  not  seem 
strange  to  any  who  ''  search  the  scriptures,"  as 
Jesus  commands.  At  the  close  of  the  longest  and 
most  laborious  scrutiny  of  these  ancient  writings, 
the  first  of  which  antedates  by  a  thousand  years 
the  period  of  Homer,  who  is  called  "  the  Father  of 


THE  BIBLE  ITS   OWN  WITNESS.  173 

History,"  the  ablest  mind  will  confess  that  it  was 
just  beginning,  as  it  were,  to  get  a  glimpse  of  their 
infinite  meaning. 

It  has  often  occured  that  men  have  set  about 
their  careful  examination  with  the  avowed  design 
of  disproving  their  supernatural  origin,  and  have 
l)rogressed  but  a  little  way  before  bowing  in  lowly 
adoration  at  the  voice  of  God  speaking  to  them  in 
this  marvellous  book.  It  is  true  that  many  have 
perused  them  without  any  such  result,  for,  as 
Henry  Rogers  says,  *'the  works  alone  that  have 
been  written  against  them  would  make  a  library  far 
greater  than  all  the  literature  of  Greece  and  Eome, 
taken  many  times  over;"  but  still  the  fact  remains 
to  be  explained  that  in  the  face  of  the  most  savage 
criticism  which  has  subjected  them  to  a  severer 
ordeal  than  any  other,  and  all  other,  writings  in  the 
world,  multitudes  of  all  ages  and  now  of  all  nations, 
including  among  them  the  strongest  intellects,  have 
clung  with  unyielding  tenacity  to  the  belief  that 
they  are  divinely  inspired.  If  it  is  so  easy,  as 
^infidelity  constantly  asserts,  to  show  that  they  are 
unworthy  of  serious  attention,  how  is  it  that  they 
have  made  all  this  stir,  and  why  is  it  that  millions 
not  only  in  past  centuries,  but  millions  living 
to-day,  the  equals,  to  say  the  least,  in  character  and 
culture  of  unbelievers,  have  j)ersisted  in  the 
assertion  that  they  recognize  the  imprint  of  the 
Creator^s  hand  in  the  volume  that  is  dearer  to  them 
than  life?  Perhaps  the  following  considerations 
may  help  to  account  for  the  wide-spread  faith  that 
it  can  not  be  regarded  as  the  invention  of  man. 


174  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

I.  It  will  be  admitted  by  all  who  believe  in  the  ex- 
istence of  a  personal  God,  that  He  might,  if  He  chose, 
have  given  us  a  written  revelation  of  Himself  and 
of  our  duty,  as  well  as  a  revelation  of  Himself  and 
of  our  obligations  in  the  works  of  nature,  and  by 
means  of  the  human  reason  and  conscience.  It  is 
not  here  asserted  that  He  has  given  a  written  reve- 
lation, or  that  there  is  any  need  of  such  a  revela- 
tion ;  but  surely  it  will  not  be  denied  that  He  who 
made  the  mind  of  man,  and  endowed  him  with 
reason  and  conscience,  could  communicate  His 
pleasure  and  His  purposes  through  the  agency  of 
human  thoughts  and  words,  if  He  desired  to  em- 
ploy them  in  this  service.  Every  day  and  every 
hour  we  find  men  controlling  the  opinions  and 
shaping  the  conduct  of  other  men  by  their  thoughts 
expressed  in  words  spoken  or  written ;  and  beyond 
all  question,  God  is  able  to  influence  the  minds  of 
any  number  He  m^y  select  to  manifest  His  will. 

II.  It  will  be  admitted  that  we  can  obtain  a  much 
clearer  and  more  simple,  and  therefore  more  satis- 
factory knowledge  of  Him,  and  of  what  we  ought 
to  do,  by  a  written  revelation,  than  by  the  displays 
of  His  attributes  and  perfections  on  the  wide  field 
of  th«  material  universe,  and  in  the  decisions  of  our 
own  judgment  of  right  and  wrong.  Or  if  this  is 
going  too  far,  it  will  certainly  be  conceded  that  for 
the  great  mass  of  mankind,  those  who  have  no 
capacity  and  no  leisure  and  no  inclination  for  close 
observation  and  x)rofound  investigation,  it  is  much 
easier  to  arrive  at  some  knowledge  of  the  being 
and  character  of  God,  and  of  the  proper  standard 


THE  BIBLE  ITS   OWN  WITNESS.  175 

of  morals,  by  a  written  revelation,  than  by  a  pro- 
cess of  diligent  and  personal  inquiry  into  natural 
and  mental  and  moral  science.  The  story  told  of 
Thales,  one  of  the  seven  wise  men  of  Greece,  illus- 
trates the  truth  that  we  can  not  by  searching  find 
out  the  Almighty  unto  perfection,  for  it  is  said  that 
after  repeated  attempts  to  define  God,  he  confessed 
he  was  further  from  success  at  the  end  than  at 
the  commencement  of  his  efforts.  Plato,  speak- 
ing of  the  soul  in  its  relations  to  eternity,  and  of 
the  rule  of  right  for  its  government  here,  says  "  The 
truth  is,  to  determine  anything  certain  about  these 
matters,  in  the  midst  of  so  many  doubts  and  dispu- 
tations, is  the  work  of  God  only."  Again,  he  rep- 
resents Socrates  as  referring  to  a  much  needed  re- 
form in  morals,  and  saying,  "  You  may  pass  the 
remainder  of  your  days  in  sleep,  or  despair  of  find- 
ing out  a  sufficient  expedient  for  this  i)urpose ;  if 
God,  in  His  providence,  do  not  send  you  some  other 
instruction."  Again,  he  describes  the  great  phi- 
losopher as  reproving  Alcibiades  for  going  to  the 
temple  to  pray,  on  the  ground  of  its  uselessness, 
declaring  that  he  must  wait  for  further  light  before 
he  could  learn  how  to  behave  towards  gods  and 
towards  men ;  and  then  in  answer  to  the  remark  of 
his  pupil,  "  Who  will  instruct  me,  for  gladly  would 
I  see  this  man,  who  he  is,"  the  sage  replied,  "  He 
is  one  who  cares  for  you  ;  but,  as  Homer  represents 
Minerva  taking  away  the  darkness  from  the  eyes 
of  Diomedes,  that  he  might  distinguish  a  god  from 
a  man,  so  it  is  necessary  that  he  should  first  take 
away  the  darkness  from  your  mind,  and  then  bring 


176  IS    THE   BIBLE   TRUE? 

near  those  things,  by  which  you  shall  know  good 
and  evil."  If  such  are  the  confessions  of  the  wisest 
men  of  antiquity  who  lived  beyond  the  light  of 
Bible  teachings,  it  will  scarcely  be  controverted 
that  for  the  uneducated  and  unthoughtful,  a  writ- 
ten revelation  would  be  of  immense  service. 

So  with  regard  to  the  questions  of  right  and 
wrong,  good  and  evil,  which  Socrates  seems  to  have 
acknowledged  could  be  determined  only  by  the 
coming  or  incarnation  of  Deity,  even  Strauss  refers 
to  "  the  arbitrary  manner  in  which  the  contempo- 
rary sophists  confounded  all  moral  notions.  To 
them,  according  to  the  maxim  of  P3  thagoras,  man 
was  the  measure  of  all  things  :  nothing  was  natu- 
rally good  or  bad,  but  only  by  an  arbitrary  rule  of 
men,  to  which  the  individual  need  not  bind  himself, 
but  as  the  authors  of  those  rules  established  them 
for  their  own  advantage,  it  was  open  to  the  indi- 
vidual to  call  good  and  put  in  practice  whatever 
was  agreeable  or  useful  to  himself.  The  art  of 
justifying  such  conduct,  argumentatively,  of  shak- 
ing the  foundation  of  all  existing  principles  in  re- 
ligion and  morals,  of  *  strengthening  the  weaker 
cause,'  i.  e.  of  making  right  of  wrong,  was  taught 
and  published  by  the  sophists,  but  in  point  of  fact 
all  that  they  did  was  to  put  into  a  methodical  form 
w^hat  all  the  world  around  them  was  practising 
already,"  (Vol.  I.  p.  243).  That  there  has  been  no 
improvement  upon  these  ancient  sophists  in  recent 
times,  may  be  inferred  from  the  fact  that  the  most 
distinguished  skeptics,  as  Lord  Bolingbroke  and 
Yolney,  can  discover  no    obligation    to  morality 


THE  BIBLE   ITS   OWN  WITNESS.  177 

outside  of  self  love;  that  Hobbes  liiuls  the  sole 
foundations  of  right  and  wrong  to  exist  in  the  civil 
law;  that  Eousseau  says  "  all  the  morality  of  our 
actions  lies  in  the  judgment  we  ourselves  form  of 
them  "  ;  that  the  Earl  of  Shaftesbury  declares,  '^  All 
the  obligations  to  be  virtuous  arise  from  the 
advantages  of  virtue,  and  disadvantages  of  vice"; 
and  that  other  infidel  writers,  who  refuse  to  recog- 
nize the  source,  the  standard,  and  the  sanction  of 
morality,  made  known  in  the  Bible,  uniformly  take 
ground  in  relation  to  this  vital  subject,  which 
unbelievers  themselves  can  see  would  speedily 
lead  to  the  entire  overthrow  of  social  order. 

III.  It  will  be  admitted  that  if  God  is  the  Being 
described  by  Deists,  as  infinitely  wise,  infinitely 
powerful,  delighting  to  reveal  Himself  amid  the 
wonders  of  the  material  globe,  and  amid  the  still 
greater  wonders  of  the  human  heart,  too  merciful 
to  punish  His  creatures  except  by  the  inexorable 
operation  of  nature's  laws,  there  is  at  least  a  strong 
probability  that  He  would  make  Himself  and  our 
duty  more  fully  known  by  a  written  revelation,  in 
view  of  the  fact  that  such  a  revelation  must  be  an 
unspeakable  blessing  to  multitudes  of  the  ignorant 
and  weak-minded.  Let  us  concede,  for  the  sake  of 
argument,  that  a  few  of  the  highly-educated,  and 
strong-minded,  and  scientific,  can  get  along  very 
well  without  such  a  revelation;  yet  they  will 
hardly  set  themselves  up  as  gods  to  do  the  think- 
ing for  the  rest  of  the  world ;  and  will  they  have  no 
compassion  upon  the  millions  of  their  fellow-men, 
who  have  not  been  favored  with  their  intellectual 
U 


178  IS   THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

vigor  and  literary  advantages  ?  Although  these 
gifted  ones  need  nothing  more  than  the  heavens  to 
declare  the  glory  of  God,  and  the  firmament  to. 
show  His  handiwork,  of  which  the  Psalmist  says, 
"  There  is  no  speech,  and  there  are  no  words  :  not 
at  all  is  their  voice  heard ''  (Alexander's  Transla- 
tion), will  they  not  permit  the  voice  of  God  to  be 
heard  in  articulate  utterance,  addressing  the  poor, 
the  downtrodden,  the  sorrowing,  the  toiling,  that 
constitute  the  vast  majority  of  earth's  dying  j)opu- 
lation  ?  If  He  is  the  God  they  represent  Him  to 
be,  and  could  utter  His  voice  distinctly  in  the 
silence  or  through  the  discordant  notes  of  nature, 
so  that  men  may  definitely  understand  Him,  He 
would  certainly  respond  in  audible  accents  to  the 
cry  of  anguish  that  comes  every  moment  from 
many  a  sinful  or  stricken  soul.  If  He  could  utter 
His  voice,  and  will  not,  whatever  His  respect  for 
the  stability  of  nature's  laws  and  for  the  sufficiency 
of  nature's  light,  then  He  is  not  what  they  repre- 
sent Him  to  be,  but  a  dreadful  and  unapproachable 
tyrant,  cold  and  unfeeling  as  Strauss  himself. 

ly.  It  will  be  admitted  that  if  God  has  spoken 
anywhere  in  a  written  revelation,  it  is  found  in  the 
book  commonly  called  the  Bible,  or  the  Sacred 
Scrii^tures;  for  so  far  as  we  are  concerned,  no 
other  book  claims  to  be  of  supernatural  origin.  It 
is  taken  for  granted  that  no  one  will  meet  this 
statement  by  reference  to  the  book  of  Mormon,  or 
the  Koran,  each  of  which  asserts  its  supernatural 
origin,  for  the  argument  is  addressed  only  to  sen- 
sible men ;  and  no  sensible  man  will  institute  any 


THE  BIBLE  ITS   OWN  WITNESS.  179 

comparison  between  these  books  and  tlie  book 
which  challenges  our  attention,  and  commands  our 
faith,  as  the  word  of  God.  Both  of  these  books 
acknowledge  the  authority  of  the  Bible,  and  the 
divine  mission  of  Jesus  Christ,  asserting  for  them- 
selves that  they  contain  nothing  more  than  a  sub- 
sequent revelation  from  heaven.  Those  who  will 
take  the  pains  to  read  them,  instead  of  receiving  at 
second  hand  what  infidels  sometimes  say  in  their 
praise  in  order  to  discredit  the  truth  of  Christianity, 
will  at  once  perceive  that  in  many  respects  they 
are  the  plainest  plagiarisms  from  the  Scriptures, 
and  that  exactly  as  they  depart  from  the  Scriptures 
to  pursue  a  line  of  original  thinking,  they  fall  to 
the  level  of  the  coarsest  superstitions,  the  lowest 
errors,  and  the  most  brutal  vices.  It  would  be  an 
insult  to  your  understanding,  therefore,  to  waste 
time  in  proving  that  they  do  not  deserve  serious 
consideration ;  but  upon  the  premises  already  es- 
tablished we  may  at  once  proceed  to  the  examina- 
tion of  the  book  to  which  they  owe  whatever  merit 
they  possess,  and  which  is  emphatically  its  own 
witness  to  its  supernatural  origin. 

First,  it  presents  a  code  of  morals  that  is  alto- 
gether unnatural,  and  hence  could  not  have  origi- 
nated with  man.  Bruno  Bauer,  in  his  "  Criticism  of 
the  Evangelical  Narrative  of  the  Synoptic  Gos- 
pels," as  quoted  by  Auberlen,  says,  "  In  no  section 
of  the  Gospels,  not  even  the  smallest,  are  there 
wanting  views  which  violate,  offend,  and  arouse 
human  nature  and  feeling  "  (Divine  Eevelation,  p. 
74).    Be  it  so,  but  it  only  strengthens  the  force  ot. 


180  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

the  argument  that  the  Gospels  did  not  find  their 
source  in  human  nature  and  feeling.  Did  human 
nature  and  feeling  originate  such  ex])ressions  as 
these,  " Blessed  are  ye,  when  men  shall  revile  jou, 
and  persecute  you,  and  shall  say  all  manner  of  evil 
against  you  falsely  for  my  sake.  .  .  .  Whoso- 
ever is  angry  with  his  brother  without  a  cause, 
shall  be  in  danger  of  the  judguieiit;  .  .  .  but 
whosoever  shall  say.  Thou  fool,  shall  be  in  danger 
of  hell  fire;  ...  Ye  have  heard  that  it  was 
said  by  them  of  old  time.  Thou  shalt  not  commit 
adultery:  but  I  say  unto  you,  that  whosoever  look- 
eth  upon  a  woman  to  lust  after  her,  hath  committed 
adultery  with  her  already  in  his  heart;  ...  I 
say  unto  you.  Swear  not  at  all,  .  .  .  but  let 
your  communication  be  Yea,  yea;  IS^ay,  nay:  for 
whatsoever  is  more  than  these,  cometh  of  evil; 
.  .  .  Ye  have  heard  that  it  hath  been  said.  Ail 
eye  for  an  eye,  and  a  tooth  for  a  tooth :  but  I  say 
unto  you.  That  ye  resist  not  evil :  but  whosoever 
shall  smite  thee  on  thy  right  cheek,  turn  to  him 
the  other  also.  And  if  any  man  will  sue  thee  at 
the  law,  and  take  away  thy  coat,  let  him  have  thy 
cloak  also.  And  whosoever  shall  compel  thee  to 
go  a  mile,  go  with  him  twain.  Give  to  him  that 
asketh  thee,  and  from  him  that  would  borrow  of 
thee  turn  not  thou  away.  Ye  have  heard  that  it 
hath  been  said.  Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor,  and 
hate  thine  enemy ;  but  I  say  unto  you.  Love  your 
enemies,  bless  them  that  curse  you,  do  good  ta 
them  that  hate  you,  and  pray  for  them  that  de- 
epitefully  use  you,  and  persecute  you."    All  these 


THE  BIBLE   ITS    OWN   WITNESS.  181 

remarkable  statements  are  found  in  a  single  chap- 
ter of  the  Gospel  by  Matthew,  and  well  might 
Bauer  say  that  they  "  violate,  offend,  and  arouse 
human  nature  and  feeling."  This  is  shown  by  the 
fact  that  the  traditions  of  the  Elders  had  added  to 
the  teachings  of  the  Pentateuch  the  clause,  "hate 
thine  enemy  "  ;  for  no  such  words  are  found  in  the 
Old  Testament,  but  they  so  fully  express  human 
nature  and  feeling  that  they  were  subjoined  to  the 
command,  '^  love  thy  neighbor,"  as  if  they  formed 
part  of  the  sacred  canon.  It  is  still  further  shown 
by  the  fact  that  men  everywhere  recognize  the 
truth  of  the  maxim,  "  Self-defence  is  the  tirst  law 
of  nature,"  and  scout  the  precept  to  turn  the  cheek 
to  be  smitten,  because,  as  the^^  assert,  it  is  against 
nature.  Of  course  it  is  against  nature,  and  there- 
fore human  nature  never  suggested  such  i^recepts, 
and  never  imagined  the  possibility  of  a  meek  and 
unresisting  endurance  of  evil  and  of  wrong  to  the 
very  last  extremity.  But  the  more  unnatural  the  in- 
fidels can  show  the  morality  of  the  Bible  to  be,  the 
more  conclusively  they  prove  the  supernatural 
character  and  origin  of  the  Bible,  since  the  code  it 
contains  could  not  have  sprung  from  the  heart  of 
man. 

Second,  the  way  of  salvation  revealed  in  the 
Gospels  lifts  them  entirely  above  the  discovery  or 
invention  of  human  nature,  as  attested  in  all  ages 
and  in  all  lands,  and  even  in  the  experience  of  every 
awakened  sinner  who  is  led  to  ask  the  thrilling 
question,  "  What  must  I  do  to  be  saved  f"  If  we 
look   back  to  ancient  times,  history  tells  us  how 


182  IS  THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

universally  men  sought  to  propitiate  the  favor  of 
the  gods  by  bloody  sacrifices,  and  costly  offerings, 
and  self-inflicted  tortures.  If  we  look  at  heathen 
nations  now  existing,  the  same  disposition  to  pur- 
chase immunity  from  punishment  and  suffering 
by  personal  effort  and  endurance  is  everywhere 
manifested.  If  we  look  at  Christendom  during 
the  past  eighteen  centuries,  we  see  what  a 
constant  struggle  it  has  required  on  the  part  of 
comparatively  a  few  faithful  witnesses  to  maintain 
the  testimony  of  Jesus  and  the  Apostles  concern- 
ing the  absolute  freeness  of  redemption.  If  we 
look  at  each  inquirer  who  is  aroused  to  his  urgent 
need  of  pardon,  and  directs  his  prayer  to  God  for 
mercy,  we  discover  how  deeply  implanted  in  human 
nature  is  the  thought,  that  eternal  life  can  be 
attained  only  as  the  result  and  reward  of  tears  and 
vows  and  resolutions  and  our  own  righteousness. 
It  is  doubtful  whether,  out  of  the  great  multitude 
of  real  Christians,  who  are  found  amid  much  that  is 
merely  nominal,  even  one  when  startled  by  the 
Spirit  of  God  in  the  death-sleep  of  sin,  immediately 
accepted  the  assurance  of  forgiveness  through  the 
finished  work  of  Christ,  instead  of  thinking  about 
God  with  distrust  and  suspicion  and  fear,  and 
delaying  for  at  least  a  little  while  in  order  to  get 
better  before  simply  believing.  Yet  all  over  the 
New  Testament  it  is  written  as  if  with  a  sunbeam 
that  the  sinner  wanting  to  be  saved  has  nothing  to 
do,  because  all  the  doing  was  done  when  Jesus 
bowed  His  head  on  the  cross  and  rose  again  for  our 
justification. 


THE   BIBLE   ITS   OWN  WITNESS.  183 

Its  language  is,  "  This  is  my  blood  of  the  New 
Testament,  which  is  shed  for  many  for  the  remission 
of  sins,"  (Matt.  xxvi.  28) ,  "  The  Son  of  man  is  come 
to  seek  and  to  save  that  which  was  lost,"  (Luke 
xix.  10) ;  *'  For  God  so  loved  the  world,  that  he 
gave  his  only  begotten  Son,  that  whosoever 
believeth  in  him  should  not  perish,  but  have  ever- 
lasting life,"  (John  iii.  16);  "He  that  heareth  my 
word,  and  believeth  on  him  that  sent  me  hath 
everlasting  life,  and  shall  not  come  into  condemna- 
tion [or  judgment]  ;  but  is  passed  from  death  unto 
life,"  (John  v.  24) ;  "  To  him  give  all  the  prophets 
witness,  that  through  his  name  whosoever  believeth 
in  him  shall  receive  remission  of  sins,"  (Acts  x. 
43) ;  "  By  him  all  that  believe  are  justitied  from  all 
things,"  (Acts  xiii.39) ;  "  Believe  on  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  and  thou  shalt  be  saved,"  (Acts  xvi.  31); 
"  To  him  that  worketh  not,  but  believeth  on  him 
that  justitieth  the  ungodly,  his  faith  is  counted  for 
righteousness,"  (Rom.  iv.  5) ;  "  The  gift  of  God  is 
eternal  life  through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord,"  (Rom. 
vi.  23);  "There  is  therefore  now  no  condemnation 
to  them  which  are  in  Christ  Jesus,"  (Rom.  yiii.  1) ; 
"  Christ  hath  redeemed  us  from  the  curse  of  the 
law,"  (Gal.  iii.  13) ;  "  Accepted  in  the  beloved ;  in 
whom  we  have  redemi)tion  through  his  blood,  the 
forgiveness  of  sins,  according  to  the  riches  of  his 
grace,"  (Eph.  i.  6,  7) ;  "  But  now,  in  Christ  Jesus, 
ye  who  sometimes  were  far  off,  are  made  nigh  by 
the  blood  of  Christ,"  (Eph.  ii.  13) ;  "  Ye  are  com- 
plete in  him,"  (Col.  ii.  10) ;  "  Not  by  works  of 
righteousness  which  we  have  done,  but  according 


184  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE  ! 

to  his  mercy  he  saved  us,"  (Tit.  iii.  5) ;  "  Where- 
fore he  is  able  also  to  save  them  to  the  uttermost 
that  come  unto  God  by  him,  seeing  he  ever  liveth 
to  make  intercession  for  them,"  (Heb.  vii.  25) ; 
"  Once  in  the  end  of  the  world  hath  he  appeared  to 
put  away  sin  by  the  sacrifice  of  himself,"  (Heb.  ix. 
26) ;  "  Forasmuch  as  ye  know  that  ye  were  not 
redeemed  with  corruptible  things,  as  silver  and 
gold,  .  .  .  but  with  the  precious  blood  of  Christ," 
(1  Pet.  i.  18,  19) ;  "  The  blood  of  Jesus  Christ  his 
Son  cleanseth  us  from  all  sin,"  (1  John  i.  7) ;  "  Thou 
wast  slain,  and  hast  redeemed  us  to  God  by  thy 
blood,"  (Eev.  v.  9) ;  "  Whosoever  will,  let  him  take 
the  water  of  life  freely,"  (Rev.  xxii.  17). 

Such  is  a  hurried  illustration  of  the  teachings  of 
the  entire  Bible,  that  in  faultless  harmony  and  per- 
fect unity  set  forth  from  Genesis  to  Revelation  the 
way  of  salvation  through  a  crucified  and  risen 
Christ.  That  it  is  a  way  of  salvation  which  ofl^ends 
and  arouses  human  nature  and  feeling  is  obvious, 
because  it  has  been  and  still  is  the  most  difficult 
thing  in  the  world  to  prevent  the  Church  itself 
from  lapsing  into  apostacy  upon  the  single  point  of 
justification  by  faith  alone.  A  large  proi)ortion  of 
Paul's  Epistles  is  occupied  with  his  defence  of  this 
fundamental  point,  showing  how  hard  it  was  in  his 
day  for  men  to  receive  a  doctrine  that  uprooted  at 
a  stroke  all  the  fancied  worthiness  of  their  own 
^performances ;  and  it  is  just  as  hard  for  men  to 
receive  it  now.  Then  when  received,  human  nature 
and  feeling  are  i)rone  to  run  into  the  opposite  error, 
and  to  argue  that  because  we  are  saved  by  grace 


THE  BIBLE  ITS   OWN  WITNESS.  185 

we  may  live  like  the  world,  sitting  deaf  and  dumb 
at  the  foot  of  the  cross.  Along  with  this  fixed 
aversion  to  a  truth  so  humbling  to  the  pride  of  the 
heart  as  salvation  for  nothing,  there  is  as  manifest 
a  recoil  from  the  simplicity  of  worship  enjoined  in 
the  New  Testament  and  practiced  by  its  writers. 
Unman  nature  and  feeling  are  again  aroused  and 
otfended  by  the  failure  to  provide  for  that  inherent 
love  of  the  pomp  and  pageantry  of  a  gorgeous 
ritual,  which  has  been  exhibited  by  almost  every 
sect,  when  the  removal  of  the  persecutor's  hand,  or 
the  increase  of  numbers  and  of  wealth,  gave  an 
opportunity  to  gratify  the  innate  taste  for  show. 
Thus  on  the  one  hand  legalism,  or  a  slavish  bondage 
to  the  law  for  justitication,  and  on  the  other  hand 
antinomianism,  or  a  contempt  for  the  law  of  holi- 
ness, on  the  one  hand  a  relish  for  disi)lay  in  the 
worship  of  God  to  cultivate,  it  is  affirmed,  the 
aesthetic  faculty,  and  on  the  other  hand,  a  neglect 
of  assembling  together,  to  none  of  which  the  New 
Testament  gives  the  slightest  countenance,  indicate 
the  strong  and  settled  tendencies  of  the  heart,  even 
against  the  recognized  authority  of  Jehovah.  How 
then  can  we  account  for  it  that  the  writers  of  the 
Bible  did  not  yield  to  that  which  is  natural,  but 
steadfastly  maintained  a  position  that  has  been 
demonstrated  by  all  history  to  be  altogether 
unnatural  f  Surely  it  is  not  going  too  far  to  say 
that  the  only  reasonable  explanation  of  the  fact, 
and  the  only  rational  understanding  of  their  singu- 
lar attitude,  must  be  reached  in  the  conclusion 
that  their  writings  q-re  supernatural. 


186  IS   THE   BIBLE   TRUE  ? 

Third,  the  harmony  and  unity,  already  mentioned 
as  prevailing  with  regard  to  the  way  of  salvation, 
^re  found  in  relation  to  every  other  theme  common 
to  writers,  separated  from  each  other  by  many 
centuries,  and  embracing  men  of  the  most  dissimilar 
calling,  culture,  and  rank.  Nay,  it  is  only  by  com- 
paring one  with  another,  and  by  studying  the 
testimony  of  one  in  the  light  thrown  upon  it  by  the 
teaching  of  another,  that  the  power  and  reality  of 
this  harmony  and  unity  can  be  recognized.  For 
example,  we  see  in  the  opening  verse  of  the  Bible, 
containing  the  sublime  declaration,  "  In  the  begin- 
ning God  created  the  heaven  and  earth,"  that  the 
word  "  God"  is  in  the  plural,  without  any  necessity 
whatever  arising  from  the  structure  of  the  Hebrew 
language,  while  it  is  the  subject  or  nominative  of  a 
verb  in  the  singular.  In  the  first  chapter,  God 
alone  is  mentioned  apart  from  any  other  name  or 
title,  while  in  the  second  chapter,  when  man 
appears  upon  the  scene,  the  designation  is  the  Lord 
God.  No  reason  is  assigned  for  what  may  seem  at 
first  unaccountable,  but  as  we  advance  into  the 
book  we  learn  that  there  are  three  persons  in  the 
unity  of  the  divine  nature,  and  that  the  word  Lord 
refers  to  the  coming  One  by  whom  man  is  to  be 
redeemed.  So  again  in  the  second  chapter  we  read 
that  "  the  Lord  God  formed  man  of  the  dust  of  the 
ground,  and  breathed  into  his  nostrils  the  breath 
of  life ;"  but  when  He  formed  woman,  "  the  Lord 
God  caused  a  deep  sleep  to  fall  upon  Adam  and  he 
slept :  and  he  took  one  of  his  ribs,  and  closed  up 
the  flesh  instead  thereof;  and  the  rib,  which  the 


THE   BIBLE   ITS   OWN  WITNESS.  187 

Lord  God  had  taken  from  man,  made  [or  builded] 
lie  a  woman,  and  bronglit  her  nnto  the  man.  And 
Adam  said,  This  is  now  bone  of  my  bones,  and  flesh 
of  my  tlesh  ;  .  .  .  therefore  shall  a  man  leave 
his  father  and  his  mother,  and  shall  cleave  unto 
his  wife." 

Not  a  word  is  said  in  explanation  of  the  strange 
/scene,  but  when  we  read  on  until  we  come  to  Paul's 
Epistle  to  the  Ephesiaus,  written  nearly  fifteen 
liundred  years  later,  we  read,  "  Husbands,  love 
your  wives,  even  as  Christ  also  loved  the  church, 
and  gave  himself  for  it ;  that  he  might  sanctify  and 
cleanse  it  with  the  washing  of  water  by  the  word, 
that  he  might  present  it  to  himself  a  glorious 
church,  not  having  spot,  or  wrinkle,  or  any  such 
thing;  but  that  it  should  be  holy  and  without 
blemish.  So  ought  men  to  love  their  wives  as  their 
own  bodies.  For  no  man  ever  yet  hated  his  own 
tiesb,  but  nourisheth  and  cherisheth  it,  even  as  the 
Lord  the  church  :  for  we  are  members  of  his  body, 
of  his  flesh,  and  of  his  bones.  For  this  cause 
[because  we  are  members  of  his  body  and  flesh  and 
bones]  shall  a  man  leave  his  father  and  mother,  and 
shall  be  joined  unto  his  wife,  and  they  two  shall  be 
one  flesh.  This  is  a  great  mystery:  but  I  speak 
concerniDg  Christ  and  the  church."  Here  then  at 
last  the  mystery  of  the  creation  of  man  and  woman 
in  the  second  chapter  of  Genesis  is  cleared  up,  and 
we  find  that  the  Lord  God  designed  marriage, 
which  is  the  very  basis  of  society  and  the  State,  to 
be  a  perpetual  illustration,  and  type,  and  parable, 
and  reminder,  of  the  eternal  and  precious  union 


188  IS   THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

existing  between  Christ  and  the  Church.  There  is 
not  a  chapter  in  the  Bible  that  is  not  linked  in  some 
such  manner  to  some  other  chapter,  and  indeed  to 
the  entire  book,  constantly  exciting  the  desire  of 
the  devout  student  to  unfold  to  others  the  beauties 
that  meet  his  gaze  at  every  step,  constantly  con- 
vincing him  that  a  book  so  unique  and  unsearchable 
is  supernatural  in  its  origin,  and  yet  constantly 
admonishing  him  of  the  failure  that  must  attend 
his  effort  to  communicate  the  innumerable  proofs 
of  its  divinity  that  shine  upon  every  page.  The 
books  of  Numbers,  Leviticus,  and  even  of  the 
Chronicles,  that  were  perhaps  once  read  by  the 
Christian,  if  read  at  all,  as  a  perfunctory  and 
protitless  service,  glow  with  a  new  meaning  and 
with  a  heavenly  radiance  when  brought  to  the  feet 
of  Jesus,  who  testifies  that  all  the  Scriptures  bear 
witness  of  Himself,  (Luke  xxiv.  27,  44 ;  John  v. 
39,  46) ;  for  there  each  writer  hastens  to  cast  his 
crown,  and  each  narrative  and  song  and  prophecy 
does  obeisance  to  the  Crucified,  only  because  God's 
Spirit  directs  and  leads  all. 

Fourth,  the  character  of  God,  as  portrayed  in 
tlie  Bible,  furnishes  additional  and  conclusive  evi- 
dence that  there  is  nothing  in  human  nature  capa- 
ble of  originating  such  a  book.  Whether  the  view 
it  gives  of  His  being  and  perfections  is  correct  or 
incorrect,  is  not  now  the  question.  Every  one  who 
possesses  the  slightest  acquaintance  with  the  his- 
tory of  mankind  will  acknowledge  that  it  is  a  view 
entirely  different  from  that  presented  in  the  various 
religions  of  the    earth ;    and  this  is  all    that  is 


THE  BIBLE   ITS    OWN   WITNESS.  189 

asserted  in  the  argument.  The  two  prominent  facts 
tliat  arrest  our  attention  iu  the  records  of  the 
nations  are  their  polytheism  and  idolatry,  not  only 
among  the  barbarous  and  degraded  races,  but 
among  the  most  cultivated  and  retined.  Perplexed 
by  the  ai)parent  contlicts  in  the  manifestations  of 
the  Deity,  and  confused  by  the  seeming  contradic- 
tions in  the  dealings  of  providence,  the  uninsi)ired 
mind  could  explain  the  mystery  and  solve  the  prob- 
lem of  mortal  existence,  only  on  the  supposition 
that  there  were  lords  many,  and  gods  many.  The 
heathen  saw  the  sky  on  one  day  bright  and  blue, 
and  the  quiet  landscape  asleep  in  the  sunshine 
upon  the  bosom  of  summer;  but  on  the  next  day 
he  beheld  the  heavens  black  with  the  wings  of  the 
storm,  and  the  beautiful  fields  wasted  by  the 
desolating  tread  of  the  hurricane.  In  the  morning 
he  leit  his  little  child  laughing  and  playing  at  the 
door;  but  in  the  evening  on  his  return  home  he 
found  it  writhing  in  the  ruftian  grasp  of  death,  and 
screaming  in  its  agony.  He  was  therefore  driven 
by  these  diverse  and  o])i)Osing  exhibitions  of  super- 
human power  to  conclude  that  there  were  sei)arate 
and  independent  intelligences  that  presided  over 
the  affairs  of  the  world,  and  very  soon,  in  carrying 
out  the  law  of  induction,  he  installed  a  nymi)h 
in  every  grove,  and  a  naiad  over  every  stream, 
until  it  is  said  that  in  elegant  Athens  there  were 
thirty  thousand  divinities  recognized,  and  in  their 
despair  of  reaching  the  truth,  they  at  length 
erected  an  altar  to  the  unknown  god. 
How  was  Jt  i^ossible,  then,  for  the  Jewish  writers, 


190  IS  THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

SO  far  behind  the  Grecian  and  Eoman  sophists  iix 
learning  and  philosophy,  to  make  such  announce- 
ments as  the  following  :  "  God  saw  that  the  wicked- 
ness of  man  was  great  in  the  earth,  and  that  every 
imagination  of  the  thoughts  of  his  heart  was  only 
evil  continually,"  (Gen.  vi.  5) ;  "I  am  the  Almighty 
God  ;  walk  before  me,  and  be  thou  perfect,"  (Gen. 
xvii.  1) ;  "  Thou  shalt  have  no  other  gods  before 
me.  Thou  shalt  not  make  unto  thee  any  graven- 
image,  or  any  likeness  of  anything  that  is  in  heaven 
above,  or  that  is  in  the  earth  beneath,  or  that  is  in 
the  water  under  the  earth  :  thou  shalt  not  bow 
down  thyself  to  them,  nor  serve  them,"  (Ex.  xx. 
3,  4) ;  "  Hear,  O  Israel,  the  Lord  our  God  is  one 
Lord,"  (Deut.  vi.  4)  ;  "  Thine,  O  Lord,  is  the  great- 
ness, and  the  x:)Ower,  and  the  glory,  and  the  victory, 
and  the  majesty  :  for  all  that  is  in  the  heaven  and 
in  the  earth  is  thine  ;  thine  is  the  kingdom,  O  Lord ; 
and  thou  art  exalted  as  head  above  all,"  (1  Chron. 
xxix.  11) ;  "  But  will  God  indeed  dwell  on  the  earth ! 
Behold  the  heaven,  and  heaven  of  heavens,  can  not 
contain  thee,"  (1  Kings  viii.  27) ;  "  Whither  shall  I 
go  from  thy  Spirit"?  or  whither  shall  IHee  from  thy 
presence '?  If  I  ascend  up  into  heaven  thou  art 
there;  if  I  make  my  bed  in  hell  [hades],  behold 
thou  art  there ;  if  I  take  the  wings  of  the  morning, 
and  dwell  in  the  uttermost  parts  of  the  sea;  even 
there  shall  thy  hand  lead  me,  and  thy  right  hand 
shall  hold  me,  (Ps.  cxxxix.  7-10) ;  ''  Great  is  our 
Lord,  and  of  great  power :  his  understanding  is 
infinite,"  (Ps.  cxlvii.  5) ;  "  Holy,  holy,  holy  is  the 
Lord  of  hosts;  the  whole  earth  is  full  of  his  glory, 


THE  BIBLE  ITS   OWN  WITNESS.  191 

(Isa.  vi.  3) ;  ''  God  is  a  spirit ;  and  they  that  worship 
him  must  worship  him  iu  spirit  and  in  truth," 
(John  iv.  24) ;  "  Neither  is  there  any  creature  that 
is  not  manifest  in  his  sight :  but  all  things  are 
naked  and  opened  unto  the  eyes  of  him  with  whom 
we  have  to  do,"  (Heb.  iv.  13) ;  ''  Every  good  gift, 
and  every  perfect  gift,  is  from  above,  and  cometh 
down  from  the  Father  of  Lights,  with  whom  is  no 
variableness,  neither  shadow  of  turning,"  (James 
i.  17) ;  "  I  am  Alpha  and  Omega,  the  beginning  and 
the  ending,  saith  the  Lord,  which  is,  and  which 
was,  and  which  is  to  come,  the  Almighty,"  (Rev.i.8). 
Hundreds  upon  hundreds  of  similar  texts  could 
be  easily  quoted,  equal  in  sublimity  and  grandeur  of 
conception,  in  the  ascription  to  God  of  infinite  holi- 
ness and  power  and  wisdom  and  majesty  and  truth 
and  goodness  and  mercy  and  love  and  immutability 
and  unity ;  and  the  question  must  be  answered,  how 
was  it,  and  why  was  it,  that  these  writers,  many  of 
whom  were  exceedingly  illiterate,  made  any  such 
just  and  magnificent  discoveries  of  the  divine 
Being  ?  They  inform  us  in  the  Old  Testament  that 
their  countrymen  century  after  century  exhibited  a 
proneness  to  idolatry  in  the  face  of  their  expostula- 
tions and  warnings,  that  seemed  to  be  innate  and 
unconquerable,  and  that  at  last  drove  them  a  peeled 
and  scattered  people  among  the  nations  of  the 
earth.  They  inform  us  in  the  New  Testament  that 
the  only  worship  which  is  acceptable  to  God  is 
that  of  the  heart;  and  yet  scarcely  had  the 
Apostles  fallen  asleep,  before  the  mystery  of 
iniquity  already  working  in  their  day,  began  ta 


192  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

lead  multitudes  of  professing  Christians  into  a 
departure  from  spiritual  service,  and  into  an 
approximation  to  the  old  idolatry,  which  shows  the 
inveteracy  of  man's  tendency  to  a  religion  foreign 
to  the  view  presented  of  God  from  Genesis  to 
Eevelation.  In  what  way,  then,  were  the  writers 
of  the  scriptures  led  to  form  a  conception  of  the 
Deity  abundantly  proved  to  be  unnatural,  because 
it  has  never  entered  the  minds  of  any  other  men  of 
any  age  or  race,  except  so  far  as  borrowed  from  the 
Bible?  Dr.  Mozley  has  w^ell  said  in  his  Bamptou 
Lectures,  when  speaking  of  the  heathen,  "The 
vulgar  believed  in  many  gods,  the  ])hilosopher 
believed  in  a  Universal  Cause;  but  neither  believed 
in  God.  The  philosopher  only  regarded  the 
Universal  Cause  as  the  spring  of  the  universal 
machine,  which  wa«  necessary  to  the  woikingof 
all  the  parts,  but  was  not  thereby  raised  to  a 
separate  order  of  being  from  them.  .  .  .  Nothing 
would  have  astonished  him  more  than,  when  he  had 
proved  in  the  lecture-hall  the  existence  of  a  God, 
to  have  been  told  to  worshij)  Him.  '  Worship 
whom  f  he  would  have  exclaimed.  '  Worship 
whatf  'Worship  howf  "  In  the  Bible  we  have 
the  Universal  Cause  revealed  to  us  as  a  living  and 
personal  God,  clothed  with  attributes  that  instantly 
challenge  the  homage  of  the  loftiest  intelligences, 
demanding  worship  in  direct  opposition  to  universal 
polytheism  and  idolatry;  and  this  fact  alone  is 
sufficient  to  establish  the  supernatural  origin  of 
the  Scriptures. 
Fifth,  suggested  by  the  foregoing  view  of  the 


THE  BIBLE  ITS   OWN  WITNESS.  193 

character  of  God,  it  may  be  well  to  notice  the 
catholic  spirit  that  breathes  through  the  Gospels 
and  Epistles,  the  liberty  of  conscience  they  secure, 
and  their  utter  condemnation  of  all  bigotry, 
sectarianism,  and  persecution.  It  is  a  common  and 
merited  taunt  of  infidelity  that  Christians  are 
divided  into  many  and  opposing  factions,  and  that 
the  pathway  of  the  Church  across  the  centuries  is 
too  often  marked  by  the  blood  of  those  who  were 
slain  for  presuming  to  differ  from  the  decisions  of 
ecclesiastical  authority.  Even  to-day  Turkish 
soldiers  may  be  seen  standing  with  fixed  bayonets 
in  the  Church  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre  at  Jerusalem 
to  prevent  so-called  Christians  who  worship  at  the 
tomb  of  Jesus  from  tearing  each  other  to  pieces. 
But  all  this,  humiliating  as  it  is  to  every  true  child 
of  God,  only  shows  that  strife  and  hatred  and 
violence  are  natural  to  man,  and  that  the  book 
which  gives  no  countenance  to  such  works  of  the 
flesh  must  be  supernatural.  No  attempt  is  here 
made  to  defend  what  is  called  Christianity,  but 
only  Christ ;  no  effort  is  put  forth  to  justify  the 
conduct  of  His  professed  followers,  but  only  to 
vindicate  the  truth  of  His  word.  It  is  impossible 
for  any  unprejudiced  believer  to  look  abroad  over 
Christendom  without  grief  and  shame  and  pain. 
Instead  of  the  extorted  admiration  of  the  heathen 
in  early  times,  "  Behold,  how  these  Christians  love 
one  another,'^  too  often  it  must  be  said,  "  Behold, 
how  these  Christians  hate  one  another !"  Sectarian 
jealousies,  rivalries,  and  heart-burnings ;  ministerial 
pride,  ambition,  and  self  seeking;  denominational 
12 


194  IS  THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

peculiarities  permitted  to  act  as  a  bar  to 
brotherly  fellowship ;  the  religious  press  frequently 
prostituted  to  the  ignoble  purpose  of  gratifying 
personal  vindictiveness,  or  of  achieving  political 
triumphs ;  false  doctrine,  formality,  worldliness 
abounding  in  the  Church ;  the  pulpit  in  many 
instances  turned  into  a  rostrum  for  the  display  of 
genius  and  wit  to  amuse  the  crowd,  and  to  hide 
from  them  the  tremendous  realities  of  eternity ; — 
such,  it  must  be  confessed  with  sorrow,  is  the 
spectacle  that  too  commonly  meets  our  gaze.  But 
it  is  a  spectacle  as  foreign  to  the  New  Testament  as 
darkness  is  to  light,  as  sin  is  to  holiness,  as  the 
displeasure  of  God  is  to  His  approval ;  and  hence 
while  it  fully  reveals  the  natural  disposition  of  the 
human  heart,  it  also  fully  reveals  the  supernatural 
origin  of  the  Bible  that  utters  a  stern  and  sweeping 
denunciation  of  it  all. 

Sixth,  the  indirect  and  manifold  blessings  con- 
ferred by  the  Bible  upon  the  world  at  large,  far 
beyond  those  derived  from  all  other  sources  com- 
bined, form  no  weak  argument  to  prove  that  it 
could  not  have  been  the  work  of  men,  least  of  all 
of  men  who  for  the  most  part  were  uneducated,  who 
lived  in  an  obscure  country,  and  who  wrote  at 
various  intervals  commencing  more  than  three 
thousand  years  ago,  and  closing  their  ministry 
nearly  two  thousand  years  ago.  Professor  Huxley 
is  the  last  person  from  whom  one  would  expect  a 
kind  word  for  the  Bible,  and  yet  even  he  writes, 
"  I  have  always  been  strongly  in  favour  of  secular 
education,    in    tlie    sense    of    education    without 


THE  BIBLE  ITS   OWN  WITNESS.  195 

theology;  but  I  must  confess  I  have  beeu  no  less 
seriously  perplexed  to  know  by  what  practical 
measures  the  religious  feeling,  which  is  the  essen- 
tial basis  of  conduct,  was  to  be  kept  up,  in  the 
present  utterly  chaotic  state  of  opinion  on  these 
matters,  without  the  Bible.  The  pagan  moralists 
lack  life  and  color,  and  even  the  noble  Stoic, 
Marcus  Antoninus,  is  too  high  and  refined  for  an 
ordinary  child.  Take  the  Bitde  as  a  whole ;  make 
the  severest  deductions  which  fair  criticism  can 
dictate  for  short-comings  and  positive  errors ; 
eliminate,  as  a  sensible  teacher  would  do,  if  left  to 
himself,  all  that  it  is  not  desirable  for  a  child  to 
occupy  himself  with  ;  and  there  still  remains  in  this 
old  literature  a  vast  residuum  of  moral  beauty  and 
grandeur.  And  then  consider  the  great  historical 
fact  that,  for  three  centuries,  this  book  has  been 
woven  into  the  life  of  all  that  is  best  and  noblest  in 
English  history ;  that  it  has  become  the  national 
epic  of  Britain,  and  is  familiar  to  noble  and  simple, 
from  John  O'  Groat's  house  to  Land's  End,  as 
Dante  and  Tasso  were  once  to  the  Italians ;  that  it 
is  written  in  the  noblest  and  purest  English,  and 
abounds  in  exquisite  beauties  of  a  merely  literary 
form  ;  and  finally  that  it  forbids  the  veriest  hind, 
who  never  left  his  village,  to  be  ignorant  of  the 
existence  of  other  countries  and  other  civilizations, 
and  of  a  great  past,  stretching  back  to  the  furthest 
limits  of  the  oldest  nations  in  the  world.  By  the 
study  of  what  other  book  could  the  children  be  so 
humanized,  and  made  to  feel  that  each  figure  in 
that  vast  historical  procession  fills,  like  themselves, 


196  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

but  a  momentary  space  in  the  interval  between  two 
eternities  ;  and  earns  the  blessings  or  the  curses  of 
all  time,  according  to  its  effort  to  do  good  and  hate 
evil,  even  as  they  also  are  earning  their  payment 
for  their  work  ?"  (Contemporary  Review,  Dec.  1870). 
It  is  well  said  that  "  this  book  has  been  woven 
into  the  life  of  all  that  is  best  and  noblest  in  Eng- 
lish history,"  and  it  may  be  added,  in  the  history 
of  every  other  nation  that  has  known  the  unspeak- 
able value  of  an  open  Bible.  Think  of  its  obvious 
and  acknowledged  influence  ux^on  the  i^rogress  of 
human  thought  and  literature.  Think  of  its  rela- 
tion to  civil  and  religious  liberty,  yet  commanding 
subjection  to  the  powers  that  be,  and  dissociating 
the  Christian  from  all  connection  with  earthly 
government,  except  in  enjoining  obedience.  Think 
of  the  benefit  it  has  been  to  woman,  breaking  the 
cruel  chains  that  have  bound  her  as  the  helpless 
victim  of  man's  lust  and  tyranny  in  all  heathen 
lands,  and  crowning  her  with  tender  respect  as  the 
mistress  of  the  home  and  the  affections.  Think  of 
the  matchless  wisdom  it  exhibits  in  dealing  with 
the  perplexing  question  of  slavery,  which  was  too 
difficult  for  the  statesmen  of  the  nineteenth  century 
to  solve  without  the  battle  of  the  warrior  with  con- 
fused noise,  and  garments  rolled  in  blood,  when  it 
did  not  seize  the  institution  with  violent  grasp,  but 
inculcated  precepts  and  taught  i3rinciples,  that 
could  turn  every  slaveholder  into  a  kind  master, 
and  every  slave  into  a  freeman,  in  all  but  the 
name,  or  even  into  a  "  brother  beloved "  of  him 
whom  he  served.     Think  of  the  arrest  it  lays,  as  if 


THE  BIBLE   ITS   OWN  WITNESS.  197 

with  the  hand  of  God,  iix:)on  the  wayward  impulses 
of  the  heart,  forbidding  with  solemn  warning  of 
inevitable  penalty  in  this  world,  and  the  world  to 
come,  the  indulgence  of  yicions,  debased  and 
revengeful  x:)ropensitie8,  that  would  so  manifestly 
gain  the  sway  but  for  its  mighty  check ;  it  is 
not  strange  Benjamin  Franklin  is  said  to  have 
written  to  Thomas  Paine,  when  about  to  publish 
his  Age  of  Eeason,  the  significant  sentence,  "Don't 
unchain  the  tiger."  Think  of  the  constant  and 
earnest  encouragement  it  gives  to  the  pursuit  of 
"whatsoever  things  are  true,  whatsoever  things 
are  honest,  whatsoever  things  are  just,  whatsoever 
things  are  pure,  whatsoever  things  are  lovely, 
whatsoever  things  are  of  good  report;  "  and  then 
let  the  sincere  inquirer  after  truth  determine 
whether  it  is  not  its  own  credible  witness  to  its 
supernatural  origin. 

Seventh,  personal  experience  of  its  power  fur- 
nishes the  most  conclusive  evidence  in  behalf  of 
its  divinity.  Nor  will  it  avail  the  skeptic  to  reply, 
as  he  is  continually  doing,  that  the  Chinese,  the 
Hindoos,  the  Mohammedans,  the  worshippers  of  a 
misshapen  fetish  in  Central  Africa,  and  the  savages 
of  the  Western  Continent,  can  plead  the  same 
experience,  for  a  very  low  degree  of  intelligence 
will  convince  the  most  careless  observer  that  the 
experience  of  a  true  Christian  is  no  less  unique 
than  the  book  from  which  it  is  derived.  It  is  not 
an  experience  of  mental  culture  merely,  although 
the  obedient  student  of  the  Bible  is  a  far  abler  and 
wiser  man  than  he  would  be  without  it,  but  it  is  a 


198  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE  ! 

moral  change  as  striking  and  complete  as  a  new 
birth,  as  life  from  the  dead.  The  description  given 
by  Paul  of  certain  Christians  in  Corinth  is  true  of 
vast  numbers  in  all  lands:  "Be  not  deceived: 
neither  fornicators,  nor  idolaters,  nor  adulterers, 
nor  effeminate,  nor  abusers  of  themselves  with 
mankind,  nor  thieves,  nor  covetous,  nor  drunk- 
ards, nor  revilers,  nor  extortioners,  shall  inherit 
the  kingdom  of  God.  And  such  were  some  of  you : 
but  ye  are  washed,  but  ye  are  sanctified,  but  ye  are 
justified  in  the  name  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  and  by  the 
Spirit  of  our  God,"  (1  Cor.  vi.  9-11).  Has  any 
other  religion  ever  wrought  so  marvellous  a  trans- 
formation as  this,  and  is  not  the  book  supernatural 
that  can  turn  through  simple  faith  in  its  testimony 
the  body,  that  was  a  foul  cage  of  unclean  birds, 
into  a  temple  of  the  Holy  Ghost*?  Yet  multitudes 
would  stand  forth,  if  the  opportunity  were  given, 
to  testify  under  oath  that  what  was  true  of  the 
Corinthians,  in  passing  from  the  slime  of  vice  into 
cleanness  and  consecration  to  Christ,  is  also  true 
of  them.  Each  would  say  with  the  man  to  whom 
Jesus  gave  sight,  "One  thing  I  know,  that, 
whereas  I  was  blind,  now  I  see,"  (John  ix.  25).  Each 
would  say,  "  once  I  perceived  no  repulsiveness  in 
sin,  no  attractiveness  in  holiness,  no  deformity  in 
myself,  no  beauty  in  Christ ;  but  now,  God  knows, 
it  18  my  most  fervent  desire  to  be  entirely  con- 
formed to  His  perfect  character,  and  to  be  rid  at 
once  and  forever  of  all  that  is  selfish  and  sensual 
and  sinful  in  thought,  word,  or  deed.  I  recognize 
the  inherent  rightfulness  and  the  absolute  necessity 


THE  BIBLE   ITS   OWN  WITNESS.  199 

of  the  declaration  of  the  Bible,  that  without 
holiness  no  man  shall  see  the  Lord,  and  I  can 
truthfully  affirm  that  the  things  I  formerly  hated 
I  love,  and  the  things  I  formerly  loved  I  hate  with 
utter  hatred."  Is  such  testimony  as  this,  borne 
by  myriads,  any  one  of  whom  would  be  believed  in 
any  court  of  the  world,  to  go  for  nothing,  and  is 
such  experience  as  this  possible  on  any  other 
theory  than  the  supernatural  origin  of  the  Bible  ? 
Especially  is  the  Christian's  experience  of  value 
as  he  advances  in  years,  and  discovers  more  and 
more  clearly  the  profound  acquaintance  of  the 
Scriptures  with  the  secret  emotions  of  his  heart, 
and  a  deeper  spiritual  meaning  in  every  verse,  and 
always  loftier  heights  of  glory  above  which  Christ 
sits  enthroned ;  and  still  more  is  it  of  value  when 
his  warfare  is  accomplished,  and  his  work  on  earth 
is  finished.  Then  while  sight  and  hearing  and 
friends  and  the  world  and  life  are  failing,  he  finds 
what  the  Bible  is  to  him  with  its  clear,  strong 
assurance,  "The  eternal  God  is  thy  refuge,  and 
underneath  are  the  everlasting  arms,"  (Deut.xxxiii^^ 
27).  "Bring  me  the  Book,"  said  Sir  Walter  Scott  | 
on  his  dying  bed.  "What  book?"  inquired  his  I 
son-in-law.  "  There  is  but  one  book,"  replied  the 
departing  novelist,  historian,  and  poet ;  and  the 
Bible  was  placed  reverently  in  his  hands.  Yes, 
there  is  but  one  book  whose  light  pierces  the 
awful  darkness  of  the  grave,  and  guides  the  weary 
spirit  of  the  believer  home  to  the  bright  land, 
described  in  language  which  Robert  Burns  said  he 
could  never  read  without  weeping,  where   "  God 


200  IS  THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

shall  Wipe  away  all  tears  from  their  eyes;  and 
there  shall  be  no  more  death,  neither  sorrow,  nor 
crying,  neither  shall  there  be  any  more  pain :  for 
the  former  things  are  i)assed  away,"  (Rev.  xxi.  4). 
Contrast  these  sweet  words  with  the  nnutterably 
sad  dedication  of  Stranss's  Life  of  Jesus  to  the 
memory  of  his  dead  brother,  in  which  he  praises 
his  courage  and  self-possession  in  refusing  to  yield, 
"  under  circumstances  which  might  have  made  the 
steadiest  quail  and  shaken  the  strongest  faith,"  to 
the  delusion  of  seeking  comfort  in  the  thought  of 
a  future  world.  Contrast  them  with  the  melan- 
choly dedication  of  Eenan's  Life  of  Jesus  to  the 
memory  of  his  dead  sister,  in  which  he  invokes 
her,  like  the  ancient  heathen,  as  his  good  genius, 
beseeching  her  to  reveal  truth  to  him ;  and  then 
say  whether  the  experience  of  Paul,  '*  having  a 
desire  to  depart,  and  to  be  with  Christ,  which  is 
far  better,"  is  not  infinitely  more  desirable  than 
the  cold  speculations  or  gloomy  bravery  of  infi- 
delity? 

Some  years  ago  it  was  my  privilege  to  meet  on 
the  shores  of  Lake  Geneva  a  young  American,  who 
was  suffering  with  spinal  disease,  that  had  crippled 
and  pained  him  from  his  birth.  His  pale  face,  and 
shrunken  limbs,  and  curved  back,  gave  indication 
of  the  agony  he  had  endured,  but  his  soul  basked 
in  the  sunshine  of  his  Saviour's  smile.  On  one 
occasion  he  went  for  a  day's  change  and  recreation 
to  the  town  of  Bex,  the  terminus  at  that  time  of 
the  railroad  through  the  valley,  and  the  place  to 
which  many  travellers   gathered  on   entering  or 


THE   BIBLE  ITS   OWN  WITNESS.  201 

leaving  Italy.  He  was  seated  at  a  table  iu  a  large 
diuing  room  with  a  number  of  tourists  who  had 
just  crossed  the  Alps,  and  were  waiting  for  the 
train,  when  his  attention  was  called  to  the  loud 
remarks  of  a  tall,  robust,  and  handsome  man;  and 
he  soon  learned  that  the  remarks  were  directed 
with  many  a  shaft  of  ridicule  and  wit  against  the 
Bible.  The  skeptic,  having  finished  his  dinner, 
was  in  the  act  of  withdrawing  from  the  table,  when 
the  young  American  said  to  him  gently,  "  May  I 
detain  you  a  moment  ? "  ^'  Certainly,"  was  the 
kind  reply,  as  the  stranger  glanced  at  the  sickly 
youth,  not  knowing  what  he  wanted.  "I  only 
wish,"  said  the  Christian,  with  his  weak  and  plain- 
tive voice,  "  to  tell  you  briefly  my  history.  I  was 
born  in  the  United  States  of  America,  and  have 
always  been  in  my  body  as  you  see  me  now,  only 
worse.  My  father  died  in  my  infancy,  and  there 
was  no  one  to  love  me  or  care  for  me  but  my 
mother.  I  had  no  childhood,  but  when  the  boys 
were  playing  and  shouting  in  the  streets,  I  was 
lying  in  a  darkened  room,  moaning  with  pain. 
Under  God  I  owe  my  life  from  day  to  day  to  the 
unwearied  tenderness  and  watchfulness  of  that 
mother,  who  thought,  when  I  had  struggled  on  to 
the  age  of  a  young  man,  that  a  visit  to  the  holy 
land,  I  had  so  longed  to  see,  would  interest  me, 
and  might  possibly  benefit  my  health.  We  reached 
Palestine  in  safety,  but  there  my  mother  was  sud- 
denly seized  with  fever,  and  was  laid  away  in  the 
grave,  and  now  I  am  on  my  way  home  to  die  too. 
The  only  joy  left  me  on  earth  is  the  hope  of  meeting 


202  IS   THE   BIBLE    TRUE? 

my  mother  again  with  Jesus,   in  heaven ;    would 
you  take  that  joy  from  me  ?  " 

"  No,  no,"  said  the  infidel,  while  the  tears  ran 
down  his  face,  "  I  would  not.  Keep  your  hope  and 
your  joy,  and  I  crave  your  pardon  for  having  said 
a  word  to  wound  you."  "  Oh,"  exclaimed  the 
Christian,  ''  thank  God,  you  cannot  deprive  me  of 
my  comfort,  for  I  know  here,"  he  added,  as  he 
placed  his  hand  upon  his  heart,  "  how  precious  is 
Christ,  and  how  true  is  His  word ;  but  to-day  you 
have  poisoned  the  happiness  of  some  of  these 
young  men,  who  have  listened  to  your  cruel 
harangue  against  the  Bible.  You  are  strong,  and 
do  not  feel  your  need  of  God ;  but  they  may  come 
very  soon  to  sorrow  and  disappointment  and  temp- 
tation and  death ;  and  you  have  done  all  you  can 
to  take  away  their  only  shelter  and  support  in  the 
hour  of  need."  The  powerful  man  stood  for  a 
moment  silent  and  humbled  before  the  pale  youth, 
and  then  said  solemnly,  "  I  was  wrong,  and  deserve 
your  reproof.  Never  again  will  I  speak  in  the 
presence  of  others  as  I  did  to-day,"  and  respect- 
fully taking  the  hand  of  the  Christian  he  withdrew. 
It  may  be  there  are  young  men  now  present  who 
have  been  terribly  injured  by  the  jest  or  sneer  of 
some  skej)tic ;  or  it  may  be  they  are  weak  enough 
to  imagine  that  it  is  a  proof  of  superior  intelligence 
to  profess  infidel  sentiments.  But  the  time  is 
drawing  near  when  the  sneer,  from  which  you 
recoiled  as  from  a  real  danger,  will  return  to  curse 
you ;  and  the  sentiments  you  admire  will  be  like 
ghosts  in  the  darkness,  that  will  not  down  at  your 


THE  BIBLE   ITS   OWN   WITNESS.  203 

bidding.  Nay,  even  now,  day  by  day,  they  are 
exerting  an  influence  which  can  not  be  otherwise 
than  exceedingly  disastrous  both  to  your  mental 
and  moral  constitution.  Men  have  been  great,  as 
the  world  calls  it,  in  spite  of  their  infidelity,  but  no 
one  was  ever  great  by  reason  of  his  infidelity, 
while  thousands  have  been  truly  great  by  their 
personal  devotion  to  Jesus.  Then  when  we  think 
of  the  dangers  besetting  the  soul  at  every  step — 
who  can  estimate  them  ?  "  Wherewithal  shall  a 
young  man  cleanse  his  way?  By  taking  heed 
thereto  according  to  thy  word,"  (Ps.  cxix.  9). 


YIL 

s 
ALLEOJED  CONTRADICTIONS. 

AS  we.  enter  upon  the  subject  now  before  us,  a 
remark  previously  made  must  be  borne  in 
mind  concerning  the  different  designs  of  the  four 
Evangelists  in  their  different  narratives.  Let  us 
suppose  that  four  men  should  undertake  to  write 
the  Life  of  Napoleon  Bonaparte,  but  conscious  of 
the  magnitude  of  their  task,  each  should  assign  to 
himself  a  special  part  of  the  subject,  one  aiming  to 
present  him  to  the  world  chiefly  as  a  great  soldier, 
another  as  a  civil  ruler  promoting  the  material 
interests  of  France,  another  exhibiting  Him  as  a 
legislator  providing  a  code  of  laws  for  the  Empire, 
and  another  portraying  him  in  his  more  private  and 
domestic  relations.  It  is  easy  to  see  that  each 
would  range  over  the  entire  field  of  his  remarkable 
history,  in  order  to  find  proofs  and  illustrations  of 
the  particular  point  in  view,  without  reference,  it 
may  be,  to  the  chronological  order  of  events,  and 
without  clashing  with  the  purposes  of  the  other 
writers.  It  is  easy  also  to  perceive  that  there 
might  be  real  agreement  in  their  testimony,  where 
a  hasty  observer  would  conclude  that  he  could  dis- 
cover innumerable  discrepancies  and  even  irrecon- 
cilable contradictions, 

204 


ALLEGED   CONTRADICTIONS.  205 

Hence  Archbishop  Whately,  in  his  masterly  little 
treatise  called  '*  Historic  Doubts  Eelative  to 
Napoleon,"  and  containing  an  ironical  Dedication 
to  Strauss  and  two  other  skeptics,  takes  up  the 
line  of  argument  pursued  by  the  German  infidel  in 
his  Life  of  Jesus,  that  Henry  Eogers  well  says 
should  be  entitled,  "  A  collection  of  all  the 
difficulties  and  discrepancies  which  honest  criticism 
has  discovered,  and  perverted  ingenuity  has 
imagined,  in  the  four  Evangelists;"  and  he  con- 
clusively shows  that  according  to  the  reasoning 
Strauss  applies  to  the  credibility  of  the  Gospel 
history,  no  such  man  as  IsTapoleon  ever  existed. 
We  may  go  further  and  affirm  that  by  the  same 
mode  of  reasoning  no  event  of  the  past,  which  has 
been  described  in  all  its  features  by  two  or  more 
witnesses,  can  be  established;  and  that  no  fact  of 
the  present,  to  which  two  or  more  witnesses  testify 
in  its  details,  may  not  be  discredited.  If,  for 
example,  two  witnesses  were  to  come  into  court, 
one  swearing  that  he  saw  the  prisoner  at  the  bar 
shoot  a  man  who  was  standing,  the  other  swearing 
that  he  saw  the  prisoner  shoot  the  same  man  when 
the  latter  was  lying  on  the  ground,  without  stop- 
j)ing  to  explain  that  there  were  two  successive 
shots;  or  if  one  witness  should  make  oath  that  he 
saw  the  prisoner  inciting  a  riot,  and  another  wit- 
ness should  make  oath  that  he  saw  the  prisoner  in 
connection  with  others  inciting  the  rabble  to  a  riot, 
it  is  not  unfair  to  say  that  Strauss  would  promptly 
seize  upon  these  discrepancies  to  prove  a  con- 
tradiction in  the  testimony. 


206  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

Perhaps  he  was  led  into  such  a  method  of  treat- 
ing the  narratives  of  the  four  Evangelists  by  the 
unhappy  attempts  of  many  Commentators  and 
Expositors  to  construct  what  they  are  pleased  to 
name  "  A  Harmony  of  the  Gospels."  In  one  sense 
there  is  harmony,  for  there  is  not  the  slightest  dis- 
agreement in  the  four  separate  and  independent 
accounts  of  the  life  of  Jesus ;  but  in  another  sense 
it  is  absurd  to  suppose  that  they  should  always 
relate  the  same  events,  or  present  them  in  the  same 
order ;  for  they  were  written  with  different  thoughts, 
to  speak  after  the  manner  of  men,  controlling  the 
minds  of  the  different  authors.  Thus  every  atten- 
tive reader  of  the  Gospels  must  have  noticed  that 
it  was  the  design  of  Matthew  to  give  us  a  portrait 
of  Jesus  in  His  special  relationship  to  Israel  as 
King  of  the  Jews,  without  at  all  observing  the 
order  of  history,  for  events  are  brought  together 
that  were  separated  by  the  interval  of  months,  and 
are  frequently  recorded  as  if  they  had  occurred 
before  other  events  which  in  fact  preceded  them. 
A  single  illustration  out  of  many  will  make  this 
l)lain.  In  Matthew  v.  vi.  and  vii.  we  have  the 
Sermon  on  the  Mount,  and  in  Matthew  viii.,  we  find 
the  healing  of  the  leper.  But  in  Mark  i.  we  learn 
that  this  miracle  was  wrought  after  the  healiug  of 
Peter's  wife's  mother,  while  Matthew  reverses  the 
order,  and  that  it  preceded  the  Sermon  on  the 
Mount.  But  why,  it  may  be  asked,  must  we  con- 
clude that  Mark  was  more  observant  than  Matthew 
of  the  actual  order  of  events?  The  answer  is, 
because  we  perceive  in  Mark  such  expressions   as 


ALLEaED   CONTRADICTIONS.  207 

"immediately,"  "forthwith,"  "straightway,"  "the 
same  day,"  "  the  next  day,"  and  other  notes  of 
time,  that  are  in  keeping  with  his  purpose  to  fur- 
nish a  picture  of  the  Lord  Jesus  as  the  prompt, 
obedient,  and  faithful  servant,  moving  with  unceas- 
ing alacrity  to  do  the  Father's  bidding,  and  to 
manifest  the  Father's  glory. 

But  did  not  Matthew  know  when  the  events 
occurred  which  he  relates?  Even  admitting  that 
he  was  an  obscure  Jew  writing  a  narrative  for  his 
own  amusement,  would  it  not  have  been  a  task  a 
child  could  accomplish  to  preserve  the  order  of  the 
various  scenes  and  speeches  that  made  up  the 
public  life  of  Jesus  ?  Then  when  he  had  published 
his  story,  which  was  soon  read  by  tens  of  thousands 
all  over  the  Eoman  empire,  would  it  not  have  been 
easy  enough  for  the  other  Evangelists  to  follow, 
and  to  shape  their  accounts  to  agree  precisely  with 
his  own"?  Either  these  Evangelists  were  the  most 
careless  and  silly  men  that  ever  ventured  to  write 
a  line,  and  if  so  we  must  account  for  the  sublimity 
of  their  conceptions,  and  for  the  majestic  power  of 
their  Gospels,  that  have  commanded  for  eighteen 
hundred  years  the  homage  of  the  noblest  minds  of 
earth,  or  they  had  an  object  to  accomplish  in  de- 
parting from  the  track  of  each  other's  statements. 
Conceding  for  a  moment  that  at  first  they  wrote 
different  accounts  which  contained  all  sorts  of 
legendary  traditions,  and  were  full  of  mistakes,  and 
forced  them  face  to  face  in  fiat  contradiction  with 
one  another,  it  is  amazing  that  on  the  discover^'  of 
the  mistakes   and   contradictions,  men  who  were 


208  IS   THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

embellisliing  these  legendary  traditions  in  part  by 
inventions  of  their  own,  did  not  at  once  bring  their 
accounts  into  nearer  correspondence.  When  we 
discover  that  they  made  no  attempt  to  remove  the 
apparent  discrepancies  that  meet  the  eye  of  the 
superficial  observer,  it  is  as  rational  as  it  is  rever- 
ent to  conclude  that  the  failure  to  correct  what 
many  suppose  to  be  their  mistakes,  was  not  owing 
to  human  imperfection,  but  to  divine  perfection,  in 
their  separate  histories.  It  is,  therefore,  the  total 
spiritual  blindness  of  Strauss,  and  others  like  him 
who  undertake  to  deal  with  the  word  of  God,  to 
which  so  many  of  the  alleged  contradictions  are 
due ;  for  they  can  not  see  the  beautiful  design  of 
each  inspired  writer  in  his  own  particular  narra- 
tive of  Jesus  and  the  resurrection. 

Another  source  of  alleged  contradictions  is  found 
in  the  errors  that  have  crept  into  the  manuscripts, 
occasioned  generally  by  the  striking  resemblance 
of  several  letters  in  the  Hebrew  and  Greek  alpha- 
bets ',  and  these  errors  could  not  have  been  avoided 
except  by  a  x^erpetual  miracle  preventing  the  blun- 
ders of  thousands  of  transcribers  through  hundreds 
of  years.  Of  course  it  is  known  to  all  that  pre- 
vious to  the  invention  of  printing  in  the  fifteenth 
century,  books  were  produced  and  perpetuated  by 
the  laborious  process  of  copying  with  the  pen,  and 
in  such  a  process  mistakes  would  inevitably  occur, 
unless  we  suppose  that  God  infallibly  inspired  a 
vast  multitude  of  mere  copyists,  of  which  the 
Bible  itself  contains  no  hint.  Perhaps  there  is  not 
a  printed  book  in   the  world  of  any  considerable 


ALLEGED   CONTRADICTIONS.  209 

size  that  is  entirely  free  from  typographical 
errors,  and  the  most  careful  copy  of  the  most  im- 
portant manuscript  will  doubtless  exhibit  defects 
of  some  kind.  It  was  a  happy  thought,  therefore, 
that  suggested  to  the  infidels  of  Germany  and 
Great  Britain,  long  before  the  days  of  Strauss,  the 
propriety  of  a  critical  and  minute  examination  of 
all  the  Hebrew  and  Greek  manuscripts  known  to 
be  in  existence,  with  the  hope  that  the  various 
readings  which  they  expected  to  discover  would 
destroy  the  credibility  of  the  more  recent  and  pop- 
ular versions  of  the  Bible.  Such  was  their  flourish 
of  trumpets  that  the  devout  and  learned  Bengel, 
who  lived  a  hundred  and  fifty  years  ago,  was  dis- 
mayed, and  entered  upon  the  study  of  all  the  man- 
uscripts of  Europe  with  intense  anxiety.  At 
length,  after  long  and  diligent  search,  he  wrote  in 
1721  to  a  friend,  with  a  joyful  and  fully  confirmed 
spirit,  "  Eat  simply  the  bread  of  the  Scriptures  as 
it  presents  itself  to  thee ;  and  do  not  distress  thy- 
self at  finding  here  and  there  a  small  particle  of 
sand  which  the  millstone  may  have  left  in  it.  Thou 
mayst,  then,  dismiss  all  those  doubts  which  at  one 
time  so  horribly  tormented  myself.  If  the  Holy 
Scriptures — which  have  been  so  often  copied,  and 
which  have  passed  so  often  through  the  faulty 
hands  of  ever-fallible  men — were  absolutely  with- 
out variations,  the  miracle  would  be  so  great,  that 
faith  in  them  would  no  longer  be  faith.  I  am 
astonished,  on  the  contrary,  that  the  result  of  all 
those  transcriptions  has  not  been  a  greater  num- 
ber of  readings." 
13 


210  IS   THE  BIBLE  TKUE  ? 

The  skeptics  raised  a  great  shout  of  triumph 
when  it  was  understood  that  critical  science  had 
detected  30,000  various  readings  in  the  different 
manuscripts ;  but,  as  Cardinal  Wiseman  says,  "  In 
all  this  mass,  although  every  attainable  source  has 
been  exhausted ;  although  the  fathers  of  every  age 
have  been  gleaned  for  their  readings  ;  although  the 
versions  of  every  nation,  Arabic,  Syriac,  Coptic, 
Armenian,  and  Ethiopian,  have  been  ransacked  for 
their  renderings;  although  manuscripts  of  every 
age  from  the  sixteenth  upwards  to  the  third,  and 
of  every  country,  have  been  again  and  again  visited 
by  industrious  swarms  to  rifle  them  of  their  treas- 
ures ;  although,  having  exhausted  the  stores  of  the 
West,  critics  have  travelled  like  naturalists  into 
distant  lands  to  discover  new  specimens — have 
visited,  like  Scholz,  or  Sebastiani,  the  recesses  of 
Mount  Athos,  or  the  unexplored  libraries  of  the 
Egyptian  and  Syrian  deserts — yet  has  nothing  been 
discovered,  no,  not  one  single  various  reading, 
which  can  throw  doubt  upon  any  passage  before 
considered  certain  or  decisive  in  favor  of  any  im- 
portant doctrine These  various  read- 
ings, almost  without  an  exception,  leave  untouched 
the  essential  parts  of  any  sentence,  and  only  inter- 
fere with  i>oints  of  secondary  importance,  the  inser- 
tion or  omission  of  an  article  or  conjunction,  the 
more  accurate  grammatical  construction,  or  the 
forms  rather  than  the  substance  of  words,"  (Sci- 
ence and  Eevealed  Eeligion,  Yol.  II,  pp.  165-6). 
The  result  of  the  conflict  so  boldly  and  confidently 
commenced  by  the  skeptics  Michaelis  sums  up  as 


ALLEGED   CONTRADICTIONS.  211 

follows :  "  They  have  ceased  henceforth  to  look  for 
anything  from  those  critical  researches  which  they 
at  first  so  warmly  recommended,  because  they  ex- 
pected discoveries  from  them  that  have  never  been 
made."  This  result  has  been  more  and  more  con- 
clusively demonstrated  by  the  more  recent  investi- 
gations of  Tregelles,  Tischendorf,  and  other  critics, 
leading  us  to  conclude  with  Gaussen,  "  that  not 
only  was  the  Scripture  inspired  on  the  day  when 
God  caused  it  to  be  written,  but  that  we  possess 
this  word  inspired  eighteen  hundred  years  ago ; 
and  that  we  may  still,  while  holding  our  sacred 
text  in  one  hand,  and  in  the  other  all  the  readings 
collected  by  the  learned  in  seven  hundred  manu- 
scripts, exclaim  with  thankfulness,  I  hold  in  my 
hands  my  Father's  testament,  the  eternal  word  of 
my  God,"  (The  Bible,  p.  197). 

Another  source  of  the  alleged  contradictions  in 
the  Bible  may  be  traced  to  a  difference  in  the  dates, 
to  which  the  assertions  that  are  supposed  to  clash 
respectively  belong,  as  when  it  is  said  at  the  dawn 
of  creation,  "  God  saw  everything  that  he  had 
made,  and,  behold,  it  was  very  good,"  (Gen.  i.  31) ; 
and  when  it  is  said  fifteen  hundred  years  later,  "  God 
saw  that  the  wickedness  of  man  was  great  in  the 
earth,  and  that  every  imagination  of  the  thoughts 
of  his  heart  was  only  evil  continually,"  (Gen.  vi.  5). 
Or  they  may  be  traced  to  diflferent  modes  of  reckon- 
ing time,  as  both  the  Jewish  and  Eoman  method 
are  mentioned  in  the  New  Testament,  and  as  we 
find  even  in  English  history  that,  according  to 
what  is  called  "  Old  Style,"  Washington  was  born 


212  IS   THE   BIBLE   TRUE  ! 

February  11,  1732,  or  according  to  the  "  Kew 
Style,"  he  was  born  February  22  ;  but  every  one 
can  see  that  there  is  no  contradiction.  Or  they 
may  be  traced  to  the  different  positions  occupied 
by  the  sacred  writers  with  reference  to  the  subject 
treated  or  the  statement  made,  as  when  God  is  said 
to  repent,  and  not  to  repent ;  as  when  it  is  declared 
that  the  children  of  God  fear  Him,  and  fear  Him 
not ;  as  when  Paul  teaches  that  we  are  justified  by 
faith  alone  before  God,  and  James  teaches  that  we 
are  justified  by  works  also  before  men  ;  as  when  it 
is  still  said  in  every-daj^  language,  "  man  is  mortal," 
and  "  man  is  immortal,"  both  being  true.  Or  they 
may  be  traced  to  the  different,  and  sometimes 
opposite,  meaning  of  the  same  word,  not  only  in 
Hebrew  and  Greek,  but  in  English,  as  the  word 
"  let "  signifies  both  to  permit  and  to  hinder,  and 
the  word  "  prevent "  signifies  both  to  go  before  or 
precede,  and  to  ohstnict  or  impede.  Or  they  may  be 
traced  to  mistranslations  of  the  original  language, 
which  it  is  the  province  of  accurate  scholarship  to 
correct. 

Without  any  further  remarks  in  regard  to  the 
origin  of  alleged  contradictions,  enough  probably 
has  been  said  to  show  a  thoughtful  "and  honest 
inquirer  after  truth  that  there  are  several  con- 
siderations which  should  be  carefully  weighed 
before  he  can  wisely  determine  to  find  real  con- 
tradictions in  the  Bible  ;  and  it  may  be  well  for  him 
to  know  that  neither  can  iufidelity  bring  forward 
anything  new  along  this  line  of  attack,  nor  can  it 
allege  a  single  contradiction  that    has  not    been 


ALLEGED   CONTRADICTIONS.  213 

triumpliantly  answered  again  and  again.  Several 
years  ago,  immediately  after  the  appearance  of 
Colenso's  book  on  the  Pentateuch,  a  very  intelli- 
gent and  sincere  Christian  in  this  city  came  in  deep 
distress  to  a  Minister  of  the  Gospel,  because  as  it 
seemed  to  him,  Colenso  had  conclusively  proved  a 
contradiction  in  two  statements  of  the  Bible  about 
the  number  of  Jacob's  descendants  that  went  down 
into  Egypt.  The  reply  wais,  "  I  have  not  seen 
Colenso's  book,  but  bring  it  to  me  to-morrow,  and 
you  will  see  that  the  charge  he  has  urged  against 
God's  word,  whatever  it  is,  has  long  since  been  met 
and  refuted  by  some  Christian  writer,  who  will  be 
summoned  to  testify  the  moment  you  let  me  know 
definitely  what  the  infidel  Bishop  asserts."  The 
next  day  he  came,  and  after  reading  Colenso's 
statement,  the  Minister  took  from  his  library  a 
work  by  Hengstenberg  qu  the  "  Genuineness  of  the 
Pentateuch,"  and  in  a  few  minutes  showed  pre- 
cisely the  same  argument,  and  so  thorough  an 
exposure  of  its  fallacy,  that  the  gentleman  quietly 
placed  Colenso's  book  in  the  fire,  and  turned  away 
with  an  expression  of  regret  that  he  had  suffered 
himself  to  be  disturbed  for  a  moment.  Let  us  see 
whether  all  of  the  alleged  contradictions  of  any 
importance  mentioned  by  Strauss  may  not  be  as 
easily  explained. 

I.  We  commence  with  the  two  genealogies  of 
Jesus  given  in  Matthew  and  Luke,  which  Strauss 
discusses  at  some  length  in  the  beginning  of  his 
second  volume,  pp.  7-19.  A  very  early  explanation 
of  the  apparent  difticulty  asserts  that  the  mother 


214  IS   THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

of  Josepli,  the  husband  of  Mary,  married  two  hus- 
bands, and  that  the  two  genealogies  in  the  two 
Gospels  are  the  genealogies  of  these  two  husbands, 
Joseph  being  the  son  by  birth  of  one,  and  the  son 
by  adoption  of  the  other.  But  the  true  explanation, 
and  the  one  that  is  in  beautiful  accord  with  the 
different  purposes  of  the  two  Evangelists,  is  found 
in  the  fact  that  Matthew  gives  us  the  genealogy  of 
Joseph,  while  Luke  gives  us  that  of  Mary.  It  will 
be  observed  that  the  former  goes  no  further  ba<'k 
in  the  genealogy  of  Jesus  than  to  prove  that  He 
was  the  son  of  David,  the  son  of  Abraham ;  but 
Luke  continues  the  line  of  His  ancestry  until  he 
reaches  Adam,  which  was  of  God.  The  reason  for 
this  is  obvious.  Matthew  wrote  for  the  Jew,  and 
to  the  Jew  it  was  of  necessity  that  Jesus  should  be 
the  heir,  according  to  the  law,  of  Joseph,  who  was 
descended  from  the  royal  branch  of  David's  house, 
of  which  two  lines  had  come  down  unbroken  to 
those  days ;  the  line  of  Solomon,  and  the  line  of 
Nathan.  If  the  genealogy  of  Mary  had  been  given 
in  Matthew  without  her  connection  with  her  hus- 
band, no  Jew  would  have  recognized  the  legal  right 
of  Jesus  to  the  throne  of  David,  and  at  once  His 
claim  as  the  Messiah  would  have  been  set  aside. 
The  Messiah  must  be  born,  not  merely  of  a  virgin, 
not  only  of  a  virgin  daughter  of  David,  but  of  one 
legally  united,  i.  e.,  in  the  eye  of  the  law,  to  a  lineal 
descendant,  as  Joseph  was,  of  the  once  reigning 
house  of  God.  But  if  Joseph  had  been  His  real 
father,  it  is  plain  that  He  could  not  have  been  the 
Saviour ;  so  that  in  the  opening  chapter  of  the  New 


ALLEGED    CONTRADICTIONS.  215 

Testament  we  behold  a  miracle  of  divine  wisdom  in 
making  Him  legally  the  son  of  Joseph,  which  was 
necessary  to  establish  His  right  to  reign,  really  the 
son  of  Mary,  which  was  necessary  to  His  humanity, 
and  in  His  divine  nature  the  Son  of  God,  which  was 
necessary  to  our  salvation. 

Strauss  imputes  a  mistake*  to  Matthew  for  omit- 
ting certain  generations  from  his  table,  and  yet  it 
is  a  mistake  which  no  school  boy  of  ordinary 
intelligence  could  have  committed,  for  even  a  school 
boy  with  the  Old  Testament  before  him  could  copy 
the  list  of  names  and  generations  found  in  Genesis, 
JS^umbers,  Chronicles,  and  elsewhere.  Why  did  not 
the  German  skeptic  also  find  fault  with  Ezra  for 
omitting  seven  generations  in  giving  his  personal 
genealogy,  and  no  one  will  deny  that  he  knew  his 
own  descent?  The  truth  is  the  omissions  furnish 
evidence  again  of  divine  wisdom,  for  it  is  the  seed 
of  the-  wicked  Athaliah  Matthew  drops  from  his 
genealogy,  while  the  Geutile  Eahab  and  Euth  are 
brought  in,  just  to  intimate  the  tender  grace  which 
was  to  be  exhibited  to  the  despised  and  outcast,  in 
the  mission  and  ministry  of  Jesus.  But  as  one  of 
these  two  Gospels  was  written  and  published 
before  the  other,  can  not  every  one  see  that  it 
would  have  been  a  very  simple  thing  for  the  later 
Evangelist  to  coi>y  the  genealogy  of  the  former, 
and  is  it  not  certain  that  he  would  have  done  so,  if 
there  had  not  been  some  special  reason  for  the 
variation  ?  Let  skeptics  learn  to  treat  the  writers 
of  the  Bible  with  the  fairness  they  show  to  any 
other  class  of  authors,  and  most  of  their  alleged 


216  IS   THE  BIBLE  TRUE? 

contradictions  will  instantly  disappear.  Leaving 
entirely  out  of  view  the  guiding  hand  of  the  Holy 
Ghost,  we  can  perceive  that  it  served  the  purpose 
of  Matthew,  in  presenting  Jesus  as  the  son  of 
David,  to  trace  His  lineage  back  from  His  reputed 
and  legal  father,  through  the  royal  line  of  Solomon ; 
and  it  served  the  purpose  of  Luke,  in  presenting 
Jesus  as  the  Son  of  man,  to  trace  Him  back  from 
Mary,  by  whom  He  became  the  Son  of  man,  through 
the  royal  line  of  Xathan,  but  beyond  David,  beyond 
Abraham,  beyond  Adam,  up  to  God.  The  correct- 
ness of  the  view  here  given  of  the  two  genealogies 
is  verified  by  the  fact  which  Lightfoot  mentions, 
that  the  Jewish  Eabbinical  writers  speak  con- 
temptuously of  Mary  as  the  daughter  of  Heli, 
whom  Luke  also  names  ;  and  hence  there  is  no  con- 
tradiction whatever  in  the  accounts. 

11.  Perhaps  the  next  contradiction  most  com- 
monly alleged  relates  to  the  death  of  Judas,  of 
whom  Matthew  states  that  he  "  went  and  hanged 
himself,"  (Matt,  xxvii.  5) ;  and  Peter  states  that 
"  falling  headlong,  he  burst  asunder  in  the  midst, 
and  all  his  bowels  gushed  out,"  (Acts  i.  18).  It  is 
needless  to  say  that  the  two  statements  do  not 
contradict  each  other,  unless  it  can  be  shown  either 
that  Matthew  asserts  Judas  did  not  fall  headlong, 
or  that  Peter  asserts  he  did  not  hang  himself. 
Matthew  does  not  deny  that  Judas,  after  hanging 
himself,  fell  headlong ;  nor  does  Peter  deny  that  he 
hanged  himself  before  falling  headlong.  Only  a 
short  time  since  the  daily  papers  contained  an 
account  of   a    young  man  who   left  this  city  for 


ALLEGED   CONTRADICTIONS.  217 

Chicago,  and  there  securing'  a  room  in  one  of  the 
magnificent  Hotels,  proceeded  to  commit  suicide  it 
is  said,  by  x^oisou,  stabbing,  hanging,  and  if 
these  methods  had  failed  he  had  made  arrange- 
ments to  fulfill  his  desperate  purpose  by  falling  into 
the  bath-tub  that  he  might  be  drowned.  A  little 
while  before  a  man  committed  a  double  suicide 
somewhere  in  Indiana,  partly  by  poison,  it  is 
asserted,  and  partly  by  an  artfully  contrived 
guillotine;  and  yet  no  one  thought  of  alleging  a 
contradiction  in  the  narratives  that  were  published 
of  these  events.  Why  can  not  the  infidel  deal  with 
the  Bible  as  with  any  other  written  testimony,  and 
admit  that  Judas  might  have  first  hanged  himself 
upon  the  edge  of  one  of  the  rocky  precipices  or  ter- 
races abounding  near  Jerusalem,  and  then  owing  to 
the  breaking  of  the  cord,  or  the  decomposition  of  his 
body,  have  fallen  headlong  upon  the  sharp  stones 
beneath  that  would  have  crushed  and  mangled  the 
corpse'?  Surely  any  fair-minded  skeptic  must  see 
in  the  two  statements,  not  an  irreconcilable  con- 
tradiction, but  positive  j)roof  of  the  independence 
of  the  two  writers,  of  the  absence  of  all  collusion  in 
their  narratives,  and  of  their  entire  freedom  from 
any  attempt  to  make  up  the  Gospel  history  by 
inventions  of  their  own. 

III.  Matthew  says  that  as  Jesus  departed  from 
Jericho,  two  blind  men  who  were  sitting  by  the  way- 
side received  their  sight  in  answer  to  their  earnest 
cry,  "  Have  mercy  on  us,  O  Lord,  thou  son  of 
David,"  (Matt.  xx.  30).  Mark  says  that  Jesus  was 
going  out  of  Jericho,  but  speaks  of  only  one  blind 


218  IS    THE   BIBLE   TRUE? 

man,  Bartimeus,  the  son  of  Timseus,  who  sat  by  the 
highway  side,  begging,  (Mark  x.  46).  Luke  speaks 
of  but  one  blind  man,  and  says  as  Jesus  was  come 
nigh  unto  Jericho,  the  miracle  was  wrought,  (Luke 
xviii.  35).  But  observe  that  he  is  the  only  one  of 
the  three  writers  who  records  the  question  of  the 
blind  man,  "  Hearing  the  multitude  pass  by,  he 
asked  what  it  meant."  This  question  he  may  have 
asked  as  Jesus  was  entering  the  city,  and  learning 
that  the  gracious  and  mighty  miracle  worker  was 
very  near,  he  may  have  gone  vrith  his  companion  in 
blindness  and  beggary  into  the  city,  and  waited 
with  the  crowd  outside  the  house  of  Zaccheus  until 
the  Messiah  appeared,  and  still  followed  him  with 
the  prayer  that  was  heard  and  answered.  Thus 
the  more  carefully  the  Gospel  narratives  are 
scanned,  the  more  clearly-  does  their  perfect  con- 
sistency appear,  and  the  more  certainly  are  we 
convinced  that  in  their  unstudied  simplicity  and 
harmony,  they  can  be  traced  neither  to  imposture 
nor  to  fanaticism  as  their  source.  Or  if  this 
explanation,  just  given  of  the  separate  accounts  in 
the  three  gospels,  is  rejected  as  unsatisfactory, 
there  is  still  another  in  the  fact  that  the  Greek 
word  rendered  come  7iigh  in  Luke  does  not 
necessarily  imply  more  than  that  He  icas  nigh  or 
near  the  city,  without  determining  whether  he  was 
entering  it,  or  departing  from  it,  at  the  time  of  the 
occurrence  related.  No  intelligent  critic  will  insist 
that  there  is  a  contradiction,  because  Matthew 
mentions  two  blind  men,  and  Mark  and  Luke  speak 
of  but  one ;  for  the  latter  do  not  say  that  there  was 


ALLEGED   CONTRADICTIONS.  219 

only  one,  and  it  served  their  purpose  best  to  call 
special  attention  to  the  one  who  was  most  promi- 
nent, while  Matthew  briefly  and  incidentally 
alludes  to  the  two. 

IV.  "  Then  was  fulfilled  that  which  was  spoken 
hy  Jeremy  the  prophet,  saying.  And  they  took  the 
thirty  pieces  of  silver,  the  price  of  him  that  was 
valued,  whom  they  of  the  children  of  Israel  did 
value ;  and  gave  them  for  the  potter's  field,  as  the 
Lord  appointed  me,"  (Matt,  xxvii.  9,  10).  iSTo  such 
words  are  found  in  Jeremiah,  but  in  Zechariah  we 
read,  ''  I  said  unto  them,  If  ye  think  good,  give  me 
my  price;  and  if  not,  forbear.  So  they  weighed 
for  my  price  thirty  pieces  of  silver.  And  the  Lord 
said  unto  me,  Cast  it  unto  the  j)otter:  a  goodly 
l^rice  that  I  was  ijrized  at  of  them.  And  I  took 
the  thirty  pieces  of  silver,  and  cast  them  to  the 
potter  in  the  house  of  the  Lord,"  (Zech.  xi.  12,  13). 
Here,  it  is  confidently  alleged,  there  is  a  plain  con- 
tradiction ;  but  apart  from  the  fact  that  some  of 
the  most  ancient  versions,  as  the  Syriac-Peshito, 
and  Persian,  and  some  of  the  early  MSS.,  omit  the 
word  Jeremiah;  apart  from  the  fact  that  the  Jews 
regarded  Jeremiah  as  the  first  of  the  prophets,  in 
a  manner  including  Zechariah,  who  quotes  him 
more  than  once ;  there  is  nothing  forced  or  unnat- 
ural in  supposing  that  Jeremiah  had  spoken  the 
words,  afterwards  recorded  by  Zechariah.  Thus 
Paul  tells  the  Ephesian  Elders  "■  to  remember  the 
words  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  how  he  said,  It  is  more 
blessed  to  give  than  to  receive,"  (Acts  xx.  35), 
although  these  words  are  nowhere  recorded  in  the 


220  IS    THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

four  Gospels.  So  Jude  informs  us  of  the  words  of 
Euoch,  the  seventh  from  Adam,  who  said,  "  Behold, 
the  Lord  cometh  with  ten  thousands  of  his  saints,'^ 
(Jude  14),  though  none  of  the  sayings  of  Enoch  are 
preserved  in  the  Old  Testament.  Besides  all  this, 
some  eminent  scholars  have  thought  that  the  9th, 
10th,  and  llth  chapters  of  Zechariah  were  Avritten 
originally  by  Jeremiah ;  and  hence  in  any  view 
there  is  no  contradiction  i)roved.  It  would  be 
becoming  modesty  in  those  who  read  the  Bible  to  sit 
with  reverent  silence  in  the  presence  of  a  difficulty 
and  wait  for  further  light,  rather  than  cavil  where 
so  much  is  divine  and  precious. 

Y.  Strauss  insists  that  the  two  accounts  con- 
tained in  Matt.  ii.  and  Luke  ii.  of  the  order  of 
events  connected  with  the  infancy  of  Jesus  are 
incompatible,  because  Matthew  says  nothing  of  the 
residence  at  Nazareth  previous  to  the  nativity,  nor 
of  the  circumstances  which  led  Joseph  and  Mary 
to  Bethlehem,  npr  of  the  scenes  that  transi>ired  in 
the  temx>le ;  while  Luke  says  nothing  of  the  visit 
of  the  wise  men  from  the  East,  nor  of  the  slaughter 
of  the  young  children  by  Herod,  nor  of  the  flight 
to  Egypt.  But  surely  no  proof  of  a  contradiction 
can  be  furnished  by  the  silence  of  an  author  con- 
cerning transactions  which  did  not  fall  within  his 
l)urpose  to  narrate,  for  if  this  rule  of  criticism 
should  be  established,  no  series  of  events  that 
have  engaged  the  attention  of  two  or  more  histo- 
rians can  be  believed.  There  is  no  reason  what- 
ever for  not  supposing  that  Joseph  and  Mary 
came  from   I^lazareth   to   Bethlehem;    that  there 


ALLEGED   CONTRADICTIONS.  221 

Jesus  was  boru ;  that  withiu  the  course  of  a  few 
days  afterwards  He  was  presented  according  to 
the  law  in  the  temple  for  circumcision ;  that  then 
the  wise  men  came  on  their  journey ;  and  this  led 
to  the  escape  of  Joseph  and  Mary  from  the  cruelty 
of  Herod.  Nor  is  there  any  difficulty  in  supposing 
that  immediately  after  the  infant  Jesus  was  pre- 
sented in  the  temple  they  returned  to  Nazareth, 
and  subsequently  came  back  to  Bethlehem,  from 
which  they  lied  into  Egypt,  or  that  they  visited 
the  spot,  forever  so  hallowed  in  their  memory  and 
thoughts,  during  some  one  of  the  great  annual  fes- 
tivals. Either  supposition  can  be  adoi)ted  without 
the  slightest  strain,  and  either  is  infinitely  more 
natural  than  the  theory  that  the  two  writers  are 
in  conflict  with  each  other,  when  it  would  have 
been  so  easy  for  one  to  copy  from  the  other.  But 
while  the  separate  accounts  show  that  they  have 
given  us  independent  narratives,  the  omissions  of 
neither  show  the  least  contradiction. 

YI.  Strauss  also  alludes  to  the  mistake  which 
he  thinks  Luke  commits  in  the  statement,  "  This 
taxing  was  first  made  when  Cyrenius  was  governor 
of  Syria,"  (Luke  ii.  2).  According  to  Josephus 
this  Cyrenius  was  not  sent  to  govern  the  province 
until  at  lea.st  ten  or  eleven  years  after  the  birth  of 
Jesus,  and  hence  it  is  taken  for  granted  that  Luke 
is  flatly  contradicted  by  history.  But  why,  it  may 
be  asked,  are  we  compelled  to  believe  Josephus 
rather  than  Lukel  What  reason  is  there  for 
assuming  that  if  one  of  the  writers  of  the  Bible 
and  a  Jewish  or  heathen  author  come  into  conflict, 


222  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE  ! 

the  former  is  manifestly  wrong,  and  the  latter 
is  plainly  right!  Does  critical  science  imagine 
that  all  writers  except  Bible  writers  are  inspired 
to  be  correct,  and  that  only  those  who  give  us  the 
Scriptures  are  uninspired?  But  in  the  instance 
now  before  us  there  is  no  need  to  infer  that  either 
Josephus  or  Luke  is  in  error.  The  clause  to  which 
Strauss  objects  is  a  parenthesis,  and  its  literal 
translation,  which  he  must  have  known,  is  as  fol- 
lows :  ^'  The  first  census  itself  was  eti'ected  while 
Cyrenius  was  governor  of  Syria.''  In  other  words, 
having  stated  that  a  decree  had  gone  forth  from 
C?esar  Augustus  that  a  general  tax  should  be 
levied,  he  then  wishes  it  to  be  known  by  the  verse 
in  the  parenthesis,  that  this  decree  must  not  be 
confounded  with  the  census  itself,  which  was 
eftected  under  Cyrenius.  Or  the  word  first  may 
be  rendered,  as  it  is  sometimes,  "prior  to,"  "be- 
fore," and  the  sense  would  then  be,  this  taxing  was 
before  that  made  under  Cyrenius.  Or  it  may  be 
that  there  were  two  taxings,  in  both  of  which 
Cyrenius  was  concerned,  for  it  is  a  remarkable 
fact  that  Justin  Martyr,  who  lived  not  very  long 
after  Luke,  asserts  three  times  that  Jesus  was 
born  under  Cyrenius,  and  the  heathen  writers  of 
that  time  did  not  deny  the  truth  of  the  statement. 
Certainly  no  one  who  is  familiar  with  the  gospel  of 
Luke,  and  with  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  of  which 
also  he  was  the  author,  can  think  that  he  would 
fall  into  such  an  inexcusable  blunder,  that  might 
have  been  avoided  by  the  most  stupid  rustic  who 
lived  at  that  day;    and  certainly  it   seems   more 


ALLEGED   CONTRADICTIONS.  223 

charitable  and  more  honest  to  conclude  that  he 
knew  what  he  was  saying  in  the  narratives,  than 
to  hurry  to  the  supposition  that  a  mistake  has 
been  found  in  the  Bible. 

yil.  According  to  the  three  first  Evangelists 
Jesus  was  nailed  to  the  cross  at  the  third  hour  of 
the  day,  that  is  to  say,  at  nine  o'clock  in  the  morn- 
ing; the  sun  was  darkened  at  the  sixth  hour,  or 
noon;  and  He  bowed  His  head  in  death  at  the 
ninth  hour,  or  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon ;  but 
according  to  John  the  execution  did  not  commence 
until  the  sixth  hour,  or  noon.  But  let  us  suppose 
that  John,  writing  in  Asia  Minor,  used  the  Eoman 
mode  of  reckoning  time,  from  midnight,  so  that 
the  sixth  hour  would  be  six  o'clock  in  the  morning, 
and  the  interval  between  that  hour  and  nine  o'clock 
would  be  occupied  by  the  necessary  preparations, 
thus  bringing  the  writers  into  perfect  agreement. 
Or  let  us  remember  that  in  the  Greek  MSS.  num- 
bers are  generally  expressed  by  the  letters  of  the 
alphabet,  and  that  the  two  Greek  letters  which 
stand  for  3  and  6  are  strikingly  alike ;  and  again 
they  can  be  brought  into  agreement  by  seeing  that 
careless  copyists  have  substituted  6  for  3  in  the 
Gospel  of  John.  This  too  is  just  precisely  what 
some  of  the  most  distinguished  scholars  claim,  and 
hence  they  insist  that  the  proper  reading  in  John 
is  the  third  hour,  as  with  the  other  Evangelists. 
But  even  if  both  explanations  are  judged  to  be 
unsatisfactory,  it  is  still  possible  that  the  three 
synoptical  Evangelists  only  meant  by  the  third  hour 
that  it  was  past,  using  au  indefinite  expression. 


224  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

and  that  John  only  meant  by  the  sixth  hour  that 
it  was  approaching,  he  too  using  an  indefinite 
expression.  At  all  events  it  is  easier  to  accept 
either  explanation  than  to  suppose  that  four  men, 
three  of  whom  had  the  writings  of  the  first  before 
them,  could  fall  into  so  meaningless  and  useless  a 
blunder  concerning  the  hour  of  the  day  when  the 
most  stupendous  fact  of  human  history  occurred. 
We  can  at  least  give  these  writers  credit  for  pos- 
sessing common  sense. 

VIII.  According  to  John  the  risen  Jesus,  on  His 
appearance  to  Mary  Magdalene,  would  not  i)ermit 
her  to  touch  Him,  because,  He  says,  "  I  am  not  yet 
ascended  to  my  Father :  but  go  to  my  brethren, 
and  say  unto  them,  I  ascend  unto  my  Father,  and 
your  Father;  and  to  my  God,  and  your  God," 
(John  XX.  17).  According  to  Matthew,  as  Mary 
Magdalene  and  the  other  Mary  ran  to  tell  the 
disciples  of  His  resurrection,  He  met  them  with 
a  glad  recognition ;  "  and  they  came  and  held  Him 
by  the  feet,  and  worshipi)ed  Him,"  (Matt,  xxviii.  9). 
Here,  in  order  to  prove  a  contradiction,  it  is 
assumed  that  Jesus  did  not  ascend  to  the  Father 
until  the  expiration  of  forty  days;  but  for  this 
view,  commonly  held  even  by  Christians,  there  is 
not  the  slightest  Scriptural  authority.  His  ascen- 
sion has  a  two-fold  relation,  first  to  His  own  people, 
and  then  to  the  world  at  large ;  for  He  has  entered 
into  heaven,  '^  now  to  appear  in  the  i^resence  of 
God  for  us,"  (Heb.  ix.  24) ;  and  He  is  also  "  the 
head  over  all  things  to  the  church,"  (Eph.  i.  22). 
In  like  manner  on  the  day  of  His  resurrection  He 


ALLEGED   CONTRADICTIONS.  225 

appeared  to  the  disciples,  and  breathed  on  them, 
saying,  '*  Eeceive  ye  the  Holy  Ghost,"  (John  xx. 
22),  and  they  did  then  and  there  receive  Him  as  the 
power  of  an  endless  life ;  but  on  the  day  of  Pente- 
cost the  Holy  Ghost  descended  in  visible  pomp  and 
majesty,  as  the  power  of  testimony  and  service, 
(Acts  ii).  It  was  appropriate,  therefore,  that  He 
should  not  permit  the  touch  of  a  human  hand 
before  ascending  to  the  Father,  for  He  must  fulfill 
the  type  of  the  high  priest  entering  into  the  holy 
place  on  the  great  day  of  atonement,  when  no  man 
could  be  in  the  tabernacle,  (Lev.  xvi.  17) ;  but  hav- 
ing ascended.  He  hastened  back,  as  it  were,  to 
satisfy  the  longing  of  Mary's  anxious  and  happy 
heart  with  the  welcoming  shout,  "All  hail !"  Forty 
days  later  He  ascended  visibly  from  the  midst  of 
His  followers,  while  His  hands  were  uplifted  in 
priestly  benediction  to  bless  them  j  but  it  is  ignor- 
ance of  Scripture  that  leads  any  to  suppose  He 
had  not  previously  ascended,  and  therefore  it  is 
ignorance  of  Scripture  that  leads  any  to  suppose 
there  is  a  contradiction  in  the  two  accounts. 

Precisely  the  same  remark  must  be  made  about 
the  contradiction  which  Strauss  alleges  with  regard 
to  the  second  coming  of  the  Lord.  "  On  one  occa- 
sion Jesus  says  to  His  disciples  that  the  Son  of 
Man  will  return  before  they  shall  have  completed 
their  Messianic  preaching  in  all  the  cities  of  Israel, 
(Matt.  x.  23) ;  another  time  he  says  that  the  second 
Advent  will  not  occur  until  the  Gospel  has  been 
preached  in  the  whole  world  among  all  peoples, 
(Matt.  xxiv.  14).  Now  these  are  two  very  different 
U 


226  IS   THE  BIBLE  TRUE  ? 

things ;  Jesus,  therefore,  must  have  changed  His 
views  very  much  between  the  first  of  these  prophe- 
cies and  the  second,  or  rather  it  is  clear  that  the 
one  was  put  into  the  mouth  of  Jesus  at  a  time 
when,  and  in  a  circle  in  which,  the  kingdom  of  the 
Messiah  was  considered  limited  to  the  people  of 
Israel,  and  the  other  from  a  point  of  view  to  which 
the  calling  of  the  heathen  into  that  kingdom  was 
already  a  settled  thing,"  (Vol.  I,  p.  326).  Here 
again  we  find  utter  ignorance  of  Scripture,  that  all 
through  the  Old  and  New  Testaments  teaches  the 
two-fold  relation  of  the  second  Advent,  first  to  the 
Jews  as  an  earthly  people  to  be  restored  to  their 
laud,  and  second  to  the  Christians  of  the  present 
dispensation  as  an  heavenly  people  to  be  associated 
with  the  millennial  reign  of  Jesus  over  the  earth. 
Think  for  a  moment  of  a  horizontal  line  represent- 
ing the  Jew,  suddenly  broken  by  a  circle  represent- 
ing the  church,  when  no  note  is  taken  of  time,  and 
on  the  opposite  side  of  the  circle  the  horizontal 
line  commencing  again,  and  you  will  readily  under- 
stand these  double  allusions  to  the  second  coming 
of  Christ.  So  far  from  finding  contradictions,  we 
discover  divine  wisdom  in  perfection,  tracing  that 
coming  in  connection  with  Israel,  and  then  in  con- 
nection with  the  Gentile  world,  and  presenting  the 
teachings  of  Jesus  in  beautiful  harmony.  So  may 
all  the  alleged  contradictions  which  Strauss  men- 
tions be  easily  explained ;  and  as  there  is  no  time 
to  consider  others,  the  challenge  is  here  respect- 
fully made  to  any  infidel  to  show  one  real  contra- 
diction in  the  Bible  from  first  to  last. 


ALLEGED   CONTRADICTIONS.  227 

IX.  None  of  the  alleged  contradictions  of  the 
Old  Testament  have  been  noticed,  partly  for  want 
of  time,  and  partly  because  it  was  thought  best  to 
confine  attention  to  the  most  prominent  of  those 
which  Strauss  imagined  he  had  found  in  the  Gospel 
history.  But  there  is  the  less  need  of  turning  aside 
to  glance  at  the  Old  Testament  narratives,  because 
Jesus  set  the  seal  of  His  own  divine  sanction  upon 
the  canon  of  the  Old  Testament  as  a  whole,  pre- 
cisely in  the  form  in  which  we  x)ossess  it  to-day, 
and  especially  upon  those  portions  at  which  infi- 
delity has  always  delighted  to  cavil.  Thus  He 
expressly  recognizes  the  truth  of  the  story  con- 
nected with  a  universal  deluge,  (Matt.  xxiv.  38,  39; 
Luke  xvii.  27) ;  the  truth  of  the  story  connected 
with  the  destruction  of  Sodom  and  Gomorrah, 
(Matt.  xi.  23,  24  •  Luke  xvii.  28,  29) ;  the  truth  of 
the  story  connected  with  Jonah,  (Matt.  xii.  39-41) ; 
and  the  truth  of  the  story  connected  with  Lot's 
wife,  (Luke  xvii.  32).  It  is  as  if  He  confronted 
proud  man  with  the  solemn  words.  It  is  at  thy 
peril  if  thou  believest  not  these  Scriptures,  for  if 
thou  believest  them  not  thou  believest  Me  not; 
"  and  he  that  believeth  not  the  Son  shall  not  see 
life;  but  the  wrath  of  God  abideth  on  him,"  (John 
iii.  36).  So  the  Holy  Ghost,  or,  if  this  expression 
is  ofl'ensive  to  you,  the  Apostles  Peter  and  Jude 
and  John  vouch  for  the  correctness  of  the  narra- 
tives concerning  the  angels  that  sinned,  the  flood, 
the  overthrow  of  Sodom  and  Gomorrah,  and 
Balaam,  (2  Pet.  ii.  iii. ;  Jude  6-11 ;  Eev.  ii.  14) ;  and  in 
many  other  places  the  Old  and  the  New  Testaments 


228  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

are  so  linked  together,  that  it  is  impossible 
to  deny  the  credibility  of  the  former  without 
sweeping  the  latter  out  of  existence.  The  Bible 
comes  to  us,  not  to  discuss  scientific  questions 
from  the  exceedingly  narrow  standpoint  of  feeble 
human  reason  and  limited  human  knowledge,  but 
with  authority  it  commands  our  faith.  The  only 
time  God  condescends  to  argue  is  when  He 
approaches  the  lost  sinner  with  the  gentle  invita- 
tion, "  Come  now,  and  let  us  reason  together  saith 
the  Lord:  Though  your  sins  be  as  scarlet,  they 
shall  be  as  white  as  snow;  though  they  be  red  like 
crimson,  they  shall  be  as  wool,"  (Isa.  i.  18). 

X.  Neither  does  it  come  within  the  purpose  of 
these  lectures  to  consider  the  alleged  contradic- 
tions between  the  Scriptures  and  the  discoveries 
of  Science ;  but  it  is  sufficient  to  say  that  if  it  has 
been  proved,  or  if  it  can  be  proved,  that  the  Scrip- 
tures contain  the  word  of  God,  it  is  impossible  to 
discover  a  contradiction  between  their  testimony 
and  true  Sciencel  There  are  many  who  will  obtain 
a  little  smattering  of  science  by  reading  one  or  two 
books,  or  by  glancing  at  the  Eeviews,  and  then 
swell  with  a  conceit  of  their  vast  erudition,  when, 
perhaps,  the  next  discovery  will  prick  them  like  a 
bag  of  wind.  Darwin,  Huxley,  Tyndall,  and  such 
men,  may  amuse  themselves  and  the  world  with 
their  theories  as  much  as  they  please ;  and  it  is 
possible  that  in  the  course  of  time  they  may  reach 
some  result  that  will  be  of  real  value;  but  the 
moment  they  bring  their  new-fledged  theories  to 
contradict  the  Bible,  that  has  stood  the  assaults 


ALLEGED   CONTRADICTIONS.  229 

and  storms  of  four  thousand  years,  their  science  is 
no  longer  science,  but  audacity  and  impertinence. 
Their  speculations  about  God,  and  eternity,  and 
the  soul,  and  prayer,  are  of  no  more  consequence 
than  the  prattling  of  infancy  or  the  babbling  of 
idiocy,  simply  because  such  subjects  do  not  belong 
to  their  department  of  investigation.  Human 
science,  if  worthy  of  the  name,  moves  in  an  orbit 
of  its  own,  divine  revelation  moves  in  another  and 
distinct  orbit,  both  wheeling  around  the  throne  of 
the  Eternal  without  clashing,  and  vieing  with  each 
other  in  oft'ering  a  tribute  of  praise  to  Him  who 
made  the  universe,  but  no  less  surely  made  the 
Holy  Scriptures.  If  science  departs  from  its 
proper  sphere  to  meddle  with  revelation,  it  will 
certainly  have  abundant  reason  sooner  or  later  to 
dei^lore  its  folly  and  presumption,  as  inevitable 
defeat  awaits  it  from  the  encounter ;  and  if  men 
were  not  what  they  are,  they  would  be  on  their 
guard  against  the  rash  surmises  of  the  scientists  j 
for  the  pathway  of  history  for  the  last  fifty  years 
is  strewn  with  the  fragments  of  discarded  and 
despised  theories  that  were  once  most  confidently 
and  tenaciously  held. 

It  is  said  that  when  Julian  the  Apostate  was 
summoning  the  philosophy,  and  marshalling  the 
military  resources  of  the  Eoman  empire,  to  crush 
Christianity,  the  distinguished  divine,  Athanasius, 
calmly  remarked  to  some  of  his  desponding  friends, 
"  It  is  a  little  cloud ;  it  will  pass  away."  Tradition 
relates  that  not  long  after,  when  Julian  was 
mortally  wounded  in  battle,  he  caught  the  blood 


230  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

Streaming  from  his  breast,  and  threw  it  into  the  air 
with  the  cry,  "  O  Galilean,  thou  hast  conquered.'^ 
Of  course  Gibbon  dismisses  the  tradition  with  con- 
tempt, but  he  writes  as  follows  of  the  closing  scene 
in  the  life  of  one  whom  he  greatly  admired : 
"  Whenever  he  closed  his  eyes  in  short  and 
interrupted  slumbers,  his  mind  was  agitated  with 
painful  anxiety ;  nor  can  it  be  thought  surprising, 
that  the  Genius  of  the  empire  should  once  more 
appear  before  him,  covering  with  a  funeral  veil  his 
head,  and  his  horn  of  abundance,  and  slowly  retir- 
ing from  the  Imperial  tent.  The  monarch  started 
from  his  couch,  and  stepping  forth  to  refresh  his 
wearied  spirits  with  the  coolness  of  the  midnight 
air,  he  beheld  a  fiery  meteor,  which  shot  athwart 
the  sky,  and  suddenly  vanished.  Julian  was  con- 
vinced that  he  had  seen  the  menacing  countenance 
of  the  god  of  war ;"  and  his  heathen  priests  having 
in  vain  endeavored  to  dissuade  him  from  exposing 
himself  in  battle,  when  pierced  by  the  fatal  javelin, 
according  to  Gibbon  he  exclaimed,  ''I  die  without 
remorse,  as  I  have  lived  without  guilt.  I  am 
pleased  to  reflect  on  the  innocence  of  my  private 
life ;  and  I  can  affirm  with  confidence,  that  the 
supreme  authority,  that  emanation  of  the  Divine 
Power,  has  been  preserved  in  my  hands  i)ure  and 
immaculate,"  (Milman's  Gibbon's  Eome,  Vol.  II. 
pp.  499,  501).  If  he  really  delivered  this  false  and 
foolish  speech,  truly  the  Galilean  had  conquered ; 
as  the  Emperor  was  left  to  exhibit  the  utter  deceit- 
fulness  of  the  human  heart,  and  the  pitiful  vanity 
and  weakness  of   human  nature,   even  amid  the 


ALLEGED   CONTRADICTIONS.  231 

solemnities  of  death ;  for  no  man  in  his  senses 
believes  he  spoke  the  truth.  Athanasius  was 
right ;  it  was  a  little  cloud,  and  soon  passed  away. 
So  it  may  be  confidently  said  of  the  work  that 
has  demanded  and  received  our  attention  during 
the  last  few  weeks.  It  engaged  the  energies  of  a 
far  more  than  ordinary  intellect  for  a  period  of 
more  than  thirty  years ;  but  after  all  "  it  is  a  little 
cloud  ;  it  will  soon  pass  away."  The  writings  of 
the  heathen  and  infidel  and  heretical  assailants  of 
Jesus  during  the  first  centuries  have  long  since 
perished,  except  as  they  have  been  partially  pre- 
served in  quotations  by  those  who  wrote  in  His 
defence.  The  writings  of  the  Deists  who  infested 
England  in  the  early  part  of  the  18th  century  have 
I)erished.  The  writings  of  the  French  Philosophers 
of  the  same  time,  after  starting  into  action  the 
hellish  forces  that  did  bloody  work  at  the  close  of 
the  century,  have  perished.  Eenan's  Life  of 
Jesus  ran  a  brief  career,  and  then  perished.  Thus 
must  it  be  with  Strauss's  Life  of  Jesus,  which  has 
ignominiously  failed  to  accomplish  its  object,  like 
the  assaults  of  those  who  preceded  him  in  their 
attempts  to  destroy  "  the  word  of  God,  which  liveth 
and  abideth  forever.  For  all  flesh  is  as  grass,  and 
all  the  glory  of  man  as  the  flower.  The  grass 
withereth,  and  the  flower  thereof  falleth  away : 
but  the  word  of  the  Lord  endureth  forever,"  (1  Pet. 
1.  23-25).  Jesus  has  said,  in  language  that  would 
be  the  height  of  blasphemy,  if  He  were  not  divine, 
"  Heaven  and  earth  shall  pass  away,  but  my  words 
shall  not  pass  away,"  (Matt.  xxiv.  35).     Yea,  though 


232  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

the  world,  under  the  tuition  of  a  Christless  culture 
and  a  Godless  science,  is  rapidly  educated  for  sub- 
mission to  the  Antichrist;  though  the  great  mass 
of  the  professing  Church,  faithless  to  the  i)rinciples 
and  i^ractices  of  the  New  Testament,  is  soon  to  be 
spued  out  of  the  mouth  of  our  insulted  Lord ;  Jesus 
still  lives,  and  His  words,  that  are  meeting  with  a 
l)recise  fulfillment  day  by  day,  still  live.  "  The 
kings  of  the  earth  set  themselves,  and  the  rulers 
take  counsel  together,  against  the  Lord,  and  against 
his  anointed,  saying.  Let  us  break  their  bands 
asunder,  and  cast  away  their  cords  from  us.  He 
that  sitteth  in  the  heavens  shall  laugh  f  the  Lord 
shall  have  them  in  derision,"  (Ps.  ii.  2-4). 

If  the  Christian  finds  himself  ready  to  despond, 
as  He  witnesses  the  astounding  spread  of  infidelity, 
not  only  outside  but  inside  the  Church,  let  him 
remember  that  Jesus  was  "  declared  to  be  the  Son 
of  God  with  j)ower,  according  to  the  Spirit  of  holi- 
ness, by  the  resurrection  from  the  dead,"  (Kom.  i. 
4).  Let  him  turn  his  anxious  thoughts  to  the 
working  of  God's  mighty  power,  "  which  he 
wrought  in  Christ,  when  he  raised  him  from  the 
dead,  and  set  him  at  his  own  right  hand  in  the 
heavenlies,  far  above  all  principality,  and  power, 
and  might,  and  dominion,  and  every  name  that  is 
named,  not  only  in  this  world,  but  also  in  that 
which  is  to  come  ;  and  hath  put  all  things  under 
his  feet,  and  gave  him  to  be  head  over  all  things  to 
the  church,  Avhich  is  his  body,  the  fulness  of  him 
that  filleth  all  in  all,"  (Eph.  i.  20-23).  The  Church 
— by  which  is  not  meant  any  particular  sect,  nor 


ALLEGED   OONTRADIOTIONS.  233 

the  various  denominations  together,  all  of  whicli 
may  go  to  pieces,  by  which  is  not  meant  those  who 
have  a  name  to  live,  and  aredead,  those  possessing 
a  form  of  godliness,  and  denying  the  power  thereof, 
but  those  who  are  born  again,  those  who  are  united 
by  the  Holy  Ghost  to  the  risen  Jesus,  those  who 
have  salvation  through  faith  in  His  name — the 
Church  is  as  safe  as  if  already  seated  b}^  His  side 
upon  His  throne.  "  My  sheep  hear  my  voice,"  He 
says,  ^'  and  I  know  them,  and  they  follow  me  :  and 
I  give  unto  them  eternal  life  j  and  they  shall  never 
perish,  neither  shall  any  pluck  them  out  of  my 
hand.  My  Father,  which  gave  them  me,  is  greater 
than  all ;  and  no  one  is  able  to  i>luck  them  out  of 
my  Father's  hand.  I  and  my  Father  are  one," 
(John  X.  27-30).  Even  in  the  last  days  when  peril- 
ous times  shall  come,  and  when  the  inspired  Apostle 
saw  everything  in  ruins,  he  adds  the  cheering 
assurance,  "  Nevertheless  the  foundation  of  God 
standeth  sure,  having  this  seal,  The  Lord  kuoweth 
them  that  are  his.  And,  Let  every  one  that 
nameth  the  name  of  Christ  depart  from  iniquity," 
(2  Tim.  ii.  19).  Only  forget  the  darkness  in  looking 
for  the  Morning  Star  that  is  to  usher  in  His  glori- 
ous appearing,  and  nothing  can  disturb  your  peace. 
Blessed  be  His  name,  it  is  for  Himself  believers 
who  know  the  truth  now  watch  and  wait,  without 
any  expectation  of  the  triumph  of  the  church, 
except  as  achieved  by  His  visible  and  j)ersonal 
presence;  without  any  desire  to  behold  the  bride 
reigning  on  the  earth  before  the  coming  and  coron- 
ation of  the  Bridegroom.     Just  as  heaven  would 


234  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

be  no  heaven  but  for  the  sight  of  Jesus,  so  the  mil- 
lennium would  be  no  millennium  unless  He  presided 
in  manifested  glory  over  the  holy  and  happy  scene. 
Let  skeptical  criticism  proceed  then  even  to  greater 
lengths  than  Strauss  in  its  ruthless  and  ungener- 
ous treatment  of  His  precious  word;  let  skeptical 
science  drift  farther  and  farther  away  from  the 
written  revelation,  until  the  very  being  of  God  is 
denied;  let  the  scoffers  of  the  last  days  walk  after 
their  own  lusts,  and  say  with  a  sneer,  "  Where  is 
the  promise  of  His  coming?  for  since  the  fathers 
fell  asleep,  all  things  continue  as  they  were  from 
the  beginning  of  the  creation,"  (2  Pet.  iii.  4) ;  "  when 
these  things  begin  to  come  to  pass,  then  look  up, 
and  lift  up  your  heads,  for  your  redemption  draw- 
eth  nigh,"  (Luke  xxi.  28).  But  the  redemption  of 
body  as  well  as  soul  that  draweth  nigh  for  believers 
is  but  the  signal  of  a  time  when  "  the  kings  of  the 
earth,  and  the  great  men,  and  the  rich  men,  and  the 
chief  captains,  and  the  mighty  men,  and  every 
bondman,  and  every  freeman,  hid  themselves  in  the 
dens  and  in  the  rocks  of  the  mountains ;  and  said 
to  the  mountains  and  rocks.  Fall  upon  us,  and  hide 
us  from  the  face  of  Him  that  sitteth  on  the  throne, 
and  from  the  wrath  of  the  Lamb  :  for  the  great  day 
of  His  wrath  has  come,  and  who  shall  be  able  to 
stand?"  (Eev.  vi.  15-17).  The  coming  of  Christ 
will  flash  the  light  of  truth  upon  all  the  x^altry 
excuses  of  unbelievers,  and  in  that  light  they  will 
refrain  from  saying  as  they  now  do,  "  we  could  not 
believe,"  but  will  confess  with  inexpressible  terror, 
"  we  would  not  believe."     He  who  is  the  truth  itself 


ALLEGED   CONTRADICTIONS.  235 

has  declared,  "  This  is  the  condemnation,  that  light 
is  come  into  the  world,  and  men  loved  darkness 
rather  than  light,  because  their  deeds  were  evil ;" 
"  and  ye  WILL  not  come  to  me,  that  ye  might  have 
life,''  (Johniii.  19;  v.  40). 

Just  because  infidelity  has  its  seat  not  in  the 
head,  but  in  the  heart,  all  attempts  to  convert  the 
skeptic  by  argument  must  necessarily  fail,  and  in 
the  face  of  the  most  complete  demonstration  he 
illustrates  the  familiar  coux^let, 

"He  that  complies  against  his  will 
Is  of  his  own  opinion  still." 

Men  do  not  want  to  believe  the  Bible,  because  the 
mind  of  the  flesh  is  enmity  against  God,  because  it 
lays  an  arrest  upon  api^etites  and  passions  which 
they  love  to  gratify,  because  it  utters  the  stern  ad- 
monition of  a  reckoning  in  the  future  world  for  the 
sins  of  the  present,  because  it  humbles  them  into  the 
dust  by  casting  the  highest  not  less  certainly  than 
the  lowest,  the  most  cultivated  and  refined  not  less 
surely  than  the  most  ignorant  and  degraded,  upon 
the  grace  of  God  and  the  atoning  sacrifice  of  Christ 
for  salvation.  But  let  a  word  of  the  humblest  and 
poorest,  winged  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  reach  the 
heart,  and  instantly  all  objections  are  answered, 
all  the  barriers  which  unbelief  has  reared  around 
the  soul  are  swept  away,  and  the  proof  that  the 
Scriptures  are  divine  shines  from  every  page,  like 
the  splendor  of  the  eternal  throne.  Several  years 
ago  a  prominent  minister  of  the  gospel  in  Cincin- 
nati   delivered    a    series    of    carefully    prepared 


236  IS   THE  BIBLE   TRUE? 

discourses  ou  the  Evidences  of  Christianity.  Among 
his  hearers  were  two  ijersons  unlike  in  every 
respect.  One  was  a  highly  educated  man,  the 
president  of  an  infidel  club,  who  had  been  commis- 
sioned to  attend  the  lectures,  and  take  notes  that 
were  subsequently  presented  for  discussion  at  the 
meetings  of  the  skeptics ;  and  the  other  was  an  old 
and  illiterate  colored  woman,  who  attended,  not 
because  she  understood  the  arguments,  but  because 
she  delighted  to  be  where  the  name  of  her  Saviour 
was  honored.  On  a  certain  evening  during  service, 
a  sleet  fell,  covering  the  stone  steps  of  the  church 
building,  and  as  the  old  woman  was  leaving  at  the 
close  of  the  sermon,  she  slipped,  and  might  have 
been  severely  injured  if  the  infidel,  who  was  descend- 
ing the  steps  at  the  same  time,  had  not  caught  her 
and  kindly  assisted  her  to  the  sidewalk.  She 
thanked  him,  and  then  said  in  a  low,  tremulous 
voice,  "  Young  master,  do  you  love  Jesus  f  They 
parted,  but  that  Toice  followed  him  to  his  room, 
and  started  a  mighty  tide  of  emotion  in  his  proud 
heart,  and  never  left  him  until  he  had  bowed  in 
faith  and  with  tears  of  adoring  gratitude  beneath 
the  cross  he  had  despised.  The  minister  hearing 
that  an  infidel,  who  had  attended  his  lectures,  was 
converted,  sought  his  acquaintance,  and  desired  to 
know  what  argument  had  convinced  him  of  his 
error.  "  Oh,"  he  replied,  "  I  listened  to  all  of  your 
arguments  with  unmoved  indifference,  save  when 
they  excited  a  feeling  of  intense  opposition  to  the 
views  you  advanced :  but  it  was  the  simple  ques- 
tion of  an  old  negro  woman,  '  do  you  love  Jesus  V 


ALLEGED   CONTRADICTIONS.  237 

that  led  me  to   see  the  cruelty  of  my  conduct 
towards  my  best  Friend." 

Dear,  dying  hearers,  if  the  poor  arguments  to 
which  you  have  listened  for  several  weeks  past,  so 
far  below  the  importance  of  the  great  subject,  have 
failed  to  convince  any  of  you  who  are  skeptical 
that  the  Bible  is  the  work  of  God,  at  least  i)ermit 
me  to  ask  you  the  searching  question,  ''  Do  you 
love  Jesus  f  If  not,  why  do  you  not  love  Him  I 
Has  He  ever  harmed  you,  or  has  He  ever  harmed 
the  world  ?  As  Pilate  said  to  the  rabble  clamoring 
for  His  crucifixion,  "Why,  what  evil  hath  he 
done  f  Would  you  crucify  Him  again  ?  Would 
you  grieve  His  heart,  so  noble,  so  good,  so  loving, 
by  turning  away  with  contemptuous  unconcern 
from  His  entreating  voice  ?  You  may  forget  Him 
for  a  time,  but  you  can  not  always  despise  His 
claims  upon  your  confidence  and  affection.  If  you 
continue  to  neglect  Him  to  the  close  of  your  brief 
mortal  existence,  God  will  assuredly  shut  you  up 
in  hell ;  for  He  will  not  permit  you  to  count  the 
blood  of  His  Son  a  common  thing.  Other  ques- 
tions may  engage  your  attention  now,  but  sooner 
or  later  the  question  that  must  be  answered,  each 
for  himself,  is  the  one  propounded  by  the  Eoman 
governor  of  Jerusalem,  "  What  shall  I  do  then 
with  Jesus,  which  is  called  Christ!"  (Matt. 
xxvii.  22). 


THE    TRUTH: 

OR 

TESTIMONY     FOR     CHRIST. 

JAMES  H.  BROOKES,  Editor. 

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MARANATHA: 

OR 

THE     XjCDIE^JD     oonycETH. 


BY  JAMES  H.  BROOKES. 


THIRD  EDITION. 


Contents  : — Chapter  I.  The  Qiiestion  Stated  ;  11.  Import- 
ance of  the  Subject;  III.  Christ's  Coming  Literal;  IV. 
Christ's  Coming  Literal;  V.  Post-millennial  Testimony; 
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XVII.  History  of  the  Doctrine;  XVIII.  Powerof  the  Doctrine  ; 
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XXI.  The  Hope  of  the  Church;  Illustrative  Diagram. 

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